Qatar vs United Arab Emirates: Share of population living in cities
Qatar
79.0%
in 2020
United Arab Emirates
73.3%
in 2020
Qatar rank
12th
United Arab Emirates rank
15th
Share of population living in cities over time
- Qatar
- United Arab Emirates
How they compare
Qatar currently reports 79.0% against 73.3% in United Arab Emirates, a difference of 5.7%.
That makes Qatar's figure about 1.1 times United Arab Emirates's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 15 shared years of data; in 1950 it was United Arab Emirates ahead.
Qatar ranks 12th and United Arab Emirates ranks 15th of 236 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, Qatar averaged higher in 2 and United Arab Emirates in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Qatar | United Arab Emirates | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1960s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1970s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| 1980s | 11.0% | 32.6% | 21.6% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1990s | 20.8% | 48.4% | 27.7% | United Arab Emirates |
| 2000s | 51.3% | 58.3% | 6.9% | United Arab Emirates |
| 2010s | 74.6% | 72.3% | 2.4% | Qatar |
| 2020s | 79.0% | 73.3% | 5.6% | Qatar |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in cities, Qatar or United Arab Emirates?
- Qatar, at 79.0% against 73.3% in United Arab Emirates as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of population living in cities between Qatar and United Arab Emirates?
- 5.7%, with Qatar ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Qatar and United Arab Emirates?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Qatar and United Arab Emirates rank globally for share of population living in cities?
- Qatar ranks 12th and United Arab Emirates ranks 15th 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 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.