Share of population living in urbanized areas in Australia

Australia: Share of population living in urbanized areas was 91.5% in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
91.5%
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
22nd
of 202 countries
All-time high
91.5%
in 2025
All-time low
0.0%
in 1000
Years of data
108
1000–2025

Share of population living in urbanized areas in Australia, 1000–2025

020406080100100015122025

Source: HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Australia recorded 91.5% for share of population living in urbanized areas in 2025. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 1.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in urbanized areas in Australia peaked at 91.5% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1000.

Australia ranks 22nd of 202 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1000s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1100s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1200s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1300s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1400s 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 1
1500s 0.2% 0.2% 0.2% 1
1600s 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% 1
1700s 1.6% 1.6% 1.6% 1
1710s 1.9% 1.9% 1.9% 1
1720s 2.2% 2.2% 2.2% 1
1730s 2.6% 2.6% 2.6% 1
1740s 3.0% 3.0% 3.0% 1
1750s 3.5% 3.5% 3.5% 1
1760s 4.1% 4.1% 4.1% 1
1770s 4.8% 4.8% 4.8% 1
1780s 5.6% 5.6% 5.6% 1
1790s 6.6% 6.6% 6.6% 1
1800s 7.7% 7.7% 7.7% 1
1810s 8.9% 8.9% 8.9% 1
1820s 10.4% 10.4% 10.4% 1
1830s 12.2% 12.2% 12.2% 1
1840s 14.2% 14.2% 14.2% 1
1850s 16.6% 16.6% 16.6% 1
1860s 19.3% 19.3% 19.3% 1
1870s 22.5% 22.5% 22.5% 1
1880s 26.3% 26.3% 26.3% 1
1890s 30.7% 30.7% 30.7% 1
1900s 35.8% 35.8% 35.8% 1
1910s 41.8% 41.8% 41.8% 1
1920s 48.7% 48.7% 48.7% 1
1930s 56.9% 56.9% 56.9% 1
1940s 66.3% 66.3% 66.3% 1
1950s 79.0% 77.4% 80.9% 10
1960s 83.8% 81.4% 84.8% 10
1970s 84.7% 84.3% 85.4% 10
1980s 85.4% 85.3% 85.7% 10
1990s 86.1% 85.4% 86.9% 10
2000s 88.1% 87.2% 88.9% 10
2010s 89.8% 89.1% 90.6% 10
2020s 91.1% 90.8% 91.5% 6

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 19 Uruguay 93.9% compare
  2. 20 Saint Pierre and Miquelon 92.3% compare
  3. 21 Chile 92.3% compare
  4. 23 Lebanon 89.7% compare
  5. 24 Denmark 89.6% compare
  6. 25 Brazil 89.5% compare

See the full ranking of 202 places →

More population data for Australia

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in urbanized areas in Australia?
Share of population living in urbanized areas in Australia was 91.5% in 2025, according to HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of population living in urbanized areas recorded in Australia?
The highest recorded value was 91.5% in 2025.
What is the lowest share of population living in urbanized areas recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1000.
How does Australia rank for share of population living in urbanized areas?
Australia ranks 22nd out of 202 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of population living in urbanized areas rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Australia data come from?
The figures come from HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population living in urbanized areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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CSV · JSON — 108 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of population living in urbanized areas
Unit
%
Source
HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
202 places, 21,784 data points, 1000–2025
Last refreshed

Share of population living in urban areas in a country over time.