China vs Netherlands: Share of population living in rural areas
China
16.4%
in 2020
Netherlands
15.7%
in 2020
China rank
175th
Netherlands rank
177th
Share of population living in rural areas over time
- China
- Netherlands
How they compare
China currently reports 16.4% against 15.7% in Netherlands, a difference of 0.7%.
Across all 15 years both countries report, China has been ahead every year.
China ranks 175th and Netherlands ranks 177th of 236 countries.
China has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | Netherlands | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 34.4% | 22.8% | 11.6% | China |
| 1960s | 30.9% | 20.7% | 10.2% | China |
| 1970s | 26.6% | 18.9% | 7.7% | China |
| 1980s | 23.8% | 18.3% | 5.6% | China |
| 1990s | 20.4% | 17.6% | 2.7% | China |
| 2000s | 18.1% | 16.4% | 1.7% | China |
| 2010s | 16.8% | 16.2% | 0.6% | China |
| 2020s | 16.4% | 15.7% | 0.7% | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in rural areas, China or Netherlands?
- China, at 16.4% against 15.7% in Netherlands as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in rural areas between China and Netherlands?
- 0.7%, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and Netherlands?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do China and Netherlands rank globally for share of population living in rural areas?
- China ranks 175th and Netherlands ranks 177th of 236 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of population living in rural areas. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Estimated share of the population living in rural areas. Rural areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.