Annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea: Annual growth rate of urban population share was 2.45 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
2.45
Change on year
up 4.5%
World rank
3rd
of 236 countries
All-time high
16.05
in 1968
All-time low
-2.18
in 1995
Years of data
76
1950–2025

Annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea, 1950–2025

051015195019872025

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea is 2.45, measured in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.5% on the previous year and up 177.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea peaked at 16.05 in 1968 and was at its lowest, -2.18, in 1995.

Papua New Guinea ranks 3rd of 236 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea, year by year

Annual values for Annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea, 1950 to 2025.
Year Value Change
1950 3.87 —
1951 1.89 -51.2%
1952 4.33 +129.0%
1953 6.03 +39.4%
1954 7.38 +22.4%
1955 8.37 +13.4%
1956 9.04 +8.0%
1957 9.44 +4.4%
1958 9.62 +1.9%
1959 9.64 +0.2%
1960 9.54 -1.0%
1961 9.36 -1.9%
1962 9.12 -2.6%
1963 8.84 -3.0%
1964 8.54 -3.4%
1965 8.01 -6.2%
1966 9.82 +22.6%
1967 14.21 +44.8%
1968 16.05 +12.9%
1969 14.06 -12.4%
1970 10.04 -28.6%
1971 6.33 -36.9%
1972 4.85 -23.4%
1973 4.25 -12.3%
1974 3.19 -25.0%
1975 1.67 -47.7%
1976 0.261 -84.4%
1977 -0.1507 -157.7%
1978 -0.2262 +50.1%
1979 -0.171 -24.4%
1980 -0.0056 -96.7%
1981 0.754 -13564.3%
1982 1.58 +109.1%
1983 2.12 +34.7%
1984 2.42 +14.0%
1985 2.49 +3.0%
1986 2.36 -5.4%
1987 2.04 -13.7%
1988 1.55 -24.1%
1989 0.8215 -46.9%
1990 0.0516 -93.7%
1991 -0.6609 -1380.8%
1992 -1.28 +94.1%
1993 -1.72 +34.2%
1994 -2.02 +17.6%
1995 -2.18 +7.7%
1996 -2.18 -0.2%
1997 -2 -8.2%
1998 -1.63 -18.2%
1999 -1.02 -37.7%
2000 -0.4415 -56.6%
2001 -0.2498 -43.4%
2002 -0.2427 -2.8%
2003 -0.2208 -9.0%
2004 -0.1976 -10.5%
2005 -0.1731 -12.4%
2006 -0.1475 -14.8%
2007 -0.1206 -18.2%
2008 -0.0925 -23.3%
2009 -0.0634 -31.5%
2010 -0.0309 -51.3%
2011 0.027 -187.4%
2012 0.2127 +687.8%
2013 0.4524 +112.7%
2014 0.6708 +48.3%
2015 0.8835 +31.7%
2016 1.09 +23.2%
2017 1.28 +18.0%
2018 1.47 +14.4%
2019 1.64 +11.9%
2020 1.81 +9.9%
2021 1.96 +8.4%
2022 2.1 +7.1%
2023 2.23 +6.1%
2024 2.34 +5.2%
2025 2.45 +4.5%

Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries

  • Papua New Guinea's 2.45 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.895, 2.7× the median. (47 countries reporting)
  • Papua New Guinea's 2.45 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.2441, 10.0× the median. (37 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
1981 +13564.3% -0.0056 0.754
1991 -1380.8% 0.0516 -0.6609
2012 +687.8% 0.027 0.2127
2011 +187.4% -0.0309 0.027
1977 -157.7% 0.261 -0.1507

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 6.96 1.89 9.64 10
1960s 10.75 8.01 16.05 10
1970s 3 -0.2262 10.04 10
1980s 1.61 -0.0056 2.49 10
1990s -1.46 -2.18 0.0516 10
2000s -0.195 -0.4415 -0.0634 10
2010s 0.77 -0.0309 1.64 10
2020s 2.15 1.81 2.45 6

Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea

  1. 1 Rwanda 3.32 compare
  2. 2 Burundi 3.12 compare
  3. 4 Chad 2.36 compare
  4. 5 Lesotho 2.21 compare
  5. 6 Mozambique 2.16 compare

See the full ranking of 237 places →

More population data for Papua New Guinea

All data for Papua New Guinea →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea?
Annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea was 2.45 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest annual growth rate of urban population share recorded in Papua New Guinea?
The highest recorded value was 16.05 in 1968.
What is the lowest annual growth rate of urban population share recorded in Papua New Guinea?
The lowest recorded value was -2.18 in 1995.
How does Papua New Guinea rank for annual growth rate of urban population share?
Papua New Guinea ranks 3rd out of 236 countries with data for 2025.
Is annual growth rate of urban population share rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
Over the last ten years it is up 177.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Annual growth rate of urban population share. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Annual growth rate of urban population share in Papua New Guinea. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 11 November 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/annual-growth-rate-of-urban-population-share/papua-new-guinea/

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About this data

Indicator
Annual growth rate of urban population share
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
237 places, 18,012 data points, 1950–2025
Last refreshed