Japan vs Rwanda: Share of population living in rural areas
Japan
8.9%
in 2020
Rwanda
7.9%
in 2020
Japan rank
212th
Rwanda rank
214th
Share of population living in rural areas over time
- Japan
- Rwanda
How they compare
Japan currently reports 8.9% against 7.9% in Rwanda, a difference of 1.0%.
That makes Japan's figure about 1.1 times Rwanda's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Rwanda ahead.
Japan ranks 212th and Rwanda ranks 214th of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Japan averaged higher in 1 and Rwanda in 7.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Japan | Rwanda | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 13.2% | 56.4% | 43.1% | Rwanda |
| 1960s | 11.9% | 48.0% | 36.2% | Rwanda |
| 1970s | 10.6% | 40.4% | 29.8% | Rwanda |
| 1980s | 10.1% | 31.1% | 21.0% | Rwanda |
| 1990s | 9.5% | 28.4% | 18.8% | Rwanda |
| 2000s | 9.0% | 19.3% | 10.3% | Rwanda |
| 2010s | 8.8% | 12.7% | 3.9% | Rwanda |
| 2020s | 8.9% | 7.9% | 1.0% | Japan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in rural areas, Japan or Rwanda?
- Japan, at 8.9% against 7.9% in Rwanda as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in rural areas between Japan and Rwanda?
- 1.0%, with Japan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and Rwanda?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Japan and Rwanda rank globally for share of population living in rural areas?
- Japan ranks 212th and Rwanda ranks 214th of 236 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) β 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.