Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Egypt

Egypt: Share of urban population who live in the largest city was 22.7% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
22.7%
World rank
105th
of 179 countries
All-time high
22.7%
in 2020
All-time low
17.4%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Egypt, 1950–2020

05101520251950198520201950: 17.4 %1955: 18.1 %1960: 18.8 %1965: 20.6 %1970: 20.8 %1975: 21.1 %1980: 21 %1985: 20.8 %1990: 21.2 %1995: 22.3 %2000: 22.4 %2005: 22.5 %2010: 22.6 %2015: 22.4 %2020: 22.7 %

Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of urban population who live in the largest city in Egypt is 22.7%, measured in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.

The figure is up 0.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Egypt peaked at 22.7% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 17.4%, in 1950.

Egypt ranks 105th of 179 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 17.8% 17.4% 18.1% 2
1960s 19.7% 18.8% 20.6% 2
1970s 21.0% 20.8% 21.1% 2
1980s 20.9% 20.8% 21.0% 2
1990s 21.8% 21.2% 22.3% 2
2000s 22.5% 22.4% 22.5% 2
2010s 22.5% 22.4% 22.6% 2
2020s 22.7% 22.7% 22.7% 1

Countries ranked near Egypt

  1. 102 Bolivia 23.1% compare
  2. 103 France 22.8% compare
  3. 104 Cameroon 22.8% compare
  4. 106 Ecuador 22.3% compare
  5. 107 Libya 22.1% compare
  6. 108 Guyana 22.0% compare

See the full ranking of 179 places →

More population data for Egypt

All data for Egypt →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of urban population who live in the largest city in Egypt?
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Egypt was 22.7% in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Egypt?
The highest recorded value was 22.7% in 2020.
What is the lowest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Egypt?
The lowest recorded value was 17.4% in 1950.
How does Egypt rank for share of urban population who live in the largest city?
Egypt ranks 105th out of 179 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of urban population who live in the largest city rising or falling in Egypt?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Egypt data come from?
The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of urban population who live in the largest city. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of urban population who live in the largest city
Unit
%
Source
European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
179 places, 2,452 data points, 1950–2020
Last refreshed

Percentage of the urban population living in the country's largest city (by population). City boundaries are defined using a consistent global approach based on satellite imagery and population data.