Maldives vs Samoa: Share of population living in rural areas
Maldives
43.5%
in 2020
Samoa
42.2%
in 2020
Maldives rank
46th
Samoa rank
49th
Share of population living in rural areas over time
- Maldives
- Samoa
How they compare
Maldives currently reports 43.5% against 42.2% in Samoa, a difference of 1.3%.
Across all 15 years both countries report, Maldives has been ahead every year.
Maldives ranks 46th and Samoa ranks 49th of 236 countries.
Maldives has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Maldives | Samoa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 86.6% | 63.0% | 23.7% | Maldives |
| 1960s | 84.1% | 58.1% | 26.0% | Maldives |
| 1970s | 79.8% | 54.0% | 25.9% | Maldives |
| 1980s | 68.7% | 49.2% | 19.5% | Maldives |
| 1990s | 59.2% | 47.1% | 12.1% | Maldives |
| 2000s | 56.4% | 44.6% | 11.7% | Maldives |
| 2010s | 50.7% | 43.9% | 6.8% | Maldives |
| 2020s | 43.5% | 42.2% | 1.3% | Maldives |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in rural areas, Maldives or Samoa?
- Maldives, at 43.5% against 42.2% in Samoa as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in rural areas between Maldives and Samoa?
- 1.3%, with Maldives ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Maldives and Samoa?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Maldives and Samoa rank globally for share of population living in rural areas?
- Maldives ranks 46th and Samoa ranks 49th 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.