Philippines vs Sri Lanka: Share of population living in rural areas
Philippines
15.2%
in 2020
Sri Lanka
15.3%
in 2020
Philippines rank
183rd
Sri Lanka rank
181st
Share of population living in rural areas over time
- Philippines
- Sri Lanka
How they compare
Sri Lanka currently reports 15.3% against 15.2% in Philippines, a difference of 0.1%.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was Philippines ahead.
Philippines ranks 183rd and Sri Lanka ranks 181st of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Philippines averaged higher in 7 and Sri Lanka in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Philippines | Sri Lanka | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 50.1% | 39.4% | 10.7% | Philippines |
| 1960s | 41.0% | 34.4% | 6.6% | Philippines |
| 1970s | 34.4% | 29.5% | 4.9% | Philippines |
| 1980s | 29.7% | 25.2% | 4.4% | Philippines |
| 1990s | 24.5% | 22.2% | 2.3% | Philippines |
| 2000s | 20.4% | 18.9% | 1.5% | Philippines |
| 2010s | 17.2% | 17.1% | 0.1% | Philippines |
| 2020s | 15.2% | 15.3% | 0.1% | Sri Lanka |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in rural areas, Philippines or Sri Lanka?
- Sri Lanka, at 15.3% against 15.2% in Philippines as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in rural areas between Philippines and Sri Lanka?
- 0.1%, with Sri Lanka ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Philippines and Sri Lanka?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Philippines and Sri Lanka rank globally for share of population living in rural areas?
- Philippines ranks 183rd and Sri Lanka ranks 181st 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.