Afghanistan vs India: Share of population living in cities
Afghanistan
39.7%
in 2020
India
39.5%
in 2020
Afghanistan rank
99th
India rank
102nd
Share of population living in cities over time
- Afghanistan
- India
How they compare
Afghanistan currently reports 39.7% against 39.5% in India, a difference of 0.2%.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was India ahead.
Afghanistan ranks 99th and India ranks 102nd of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Afghanistan averaged higher in 1 and India in 7.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Afghanistan | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 12.6% | 20.3% | 7.7% | India |
| 1960s | 16.0% | 24.0% | 8.0% | India |
| 1970s | 22.6% | 28.5% | 5.9% | India |
| 1980s | 24.8% | 30.7% | 5.9% | India |
| 1990s | 27.6% | 33.2% | 5.6% | India |
| 2000s | 30.4% | 37.8% | 7.4% | India |
| 2010s | 35.1% | 39.8% | 4.7% | India |
| 2020s | 39.7% | 39.5% | 0.2% | Afghanistan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in cities, Afghanistan or India?
- Afghanistan, at 39.7% against 39.5% in India as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in cities between Afghanistan and India?
- 0.2%, with Afghanistan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Afghanistan and India?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Afghanistan and India rank globally for share of population living in cities?
- Afghanistan ranks 99th and India ranks 102nd 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 cities. 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 cities. Cities are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.