Share of population living in urbanized areas in Ethiopia

Ethiopia: Share of population living in urbanized areas was 23.3% in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
23.3%
Change on year
up 2.1%
World rank
193rd
of 202 countries
All-time high
23.3%
in 2025
All-time low
0.0%
in 1000
Years of data
108
1000–2025

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

0510152025100015122025

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

Analysis

In 2025, share of population living in urbanized areas in Ethiopia stood at 23.3%. That is the highest value across all 108 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.1% on the previous year and up 24.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of population living in urbanized areas in Ethiopia peaked at 23.3% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1000.

That places Ethiopia 193rd out of 202 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom 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 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 1
1500s 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 1
1600s 0.2% 0.2% 0.2% 1
1700s 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% 1
1710s 0.5% 0.5% 0.5% 1
1720s 0.6% 0.6% 0.6% 1
1730s 0.6% 0.6% 0.6% 1
1740s 0.7% 0.7% 0.7% 1
1750s 0.8% 0.8% 0.8% 1
1760s 0.8% 0.8% 0.8% 1
1770s 0.9% 0.9% 0.9% 1
1780s 1.0% 1.0% 1.0% 1
1790s 1.1% 1.1% 1.1% 1
1800s 1.2% 1.2% 1.2% 1
1810s 1.3% 1.3% 1.3% 1
1820s 1.4% 1.4% 1.4% 1
1830s 1.6% 1.6% 1.6% 1
1840s 1.7% 1.7% 1.7% 1
1850s 1.9% 1.9% 1.9% 1
1860s 2.1% 2.1% 2.1% 1
1870s 2.3% 2.3% 2.3% 1
1880s 2.5% 2.5% 2.5% 1
1890s 2.7% 2.7% 2.7% 1
1900s 3.0% 3.0% 3.0% 1
1910s 3.3% 3.3% 3.3% 1
1920s 3.6% 3.6% 3.6% 1
1930s 3.9% 3.9% 3.9% 1
1940s 4.3% 4.3% 4.3% 1
1950s 5.5% 4.7% 6.3% 10
1960s 7.6% 6.5% 8.6% 10
1970s 9.4% 8.7% 10.2% 10
1980s 11.3% 10.4% 12.3% 10
1990s 13.7% 12.6% 14.7% 10
2000s 15.7% 14.9% 16.5% 10
2010s 18.6% 16.7% 20.5% 10
2020s 22.1% 20.9% 23.3% 6

Countries ranked near Ethiopia

  1. 190 Rwanda 25.7% compare
  2. 191 Nepal 25.5% compare
  3. 192 Niger 23.4% compare
  4. 194 Samoa 22.9% compare
  5. 195 Bahrain 22.6% compare
  6. 196 Sri Lanka 20.4% compare

See the full ranking of 202 places →

More population data for Ethiopia

All data for Ethiopia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of population living in urbanized areas in Ethiopia?
Share of population living in urbanized areas in Ethiopia was 23.3% 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 Ethiopia?
The highest recorded value was 23.3% in 2025.
What is the lowest share of population living in urbanized areas recorded in Ethiopia?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1000.
How does Ethiopia rank for share of population living in urbanized areas?
Ethiopia ranks 193rd out of 202 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of population living in urbanized areas rising or falling in Ethiopia?
Over the last ten years it is up 24.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Ethiopia 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.