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

Kuwait: Share of urban population who live in the largest city was 87.4% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
87.4%
World rank
2nd
of 179 countries
All-time high
87.4%
in 2020
All-time low
39.7%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

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

0204060801950198520201950: 39.7 %1955: 48.6 %1960: 60.3 %1965: 61.7 %1970: 72.8 %1975: 70 %1980: 79 %1985: 81.1 %1990: 85.9 %1995: 83 %2000: 84.2 %2005: 85.3 %2010: 85.7 %2015: 84.5 %2020: 87.4 %

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 Kuwait is 87.4%, measured in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Kuwait peaked at 87.4% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 39.7%, in 1950.

That places Kuwait 2nd out of 179 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top 10%.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 44.2% 39.7% 48.6% 2
1960s 61.0% 60.3% 61.7% 2
1970s 71.4% 70.0% 72.8% 2
1980s 80.0% 79.0% 81.1% 2
1990s 84.4% 83.0% 85.9% 2
2000s 84.8% 84.2% 85.3% 2
2010s 85.1% 84.5% 85.7% 2
2020s 87.4% 87.4% 87.4% 1

Countries ranked near Kuwait

  1. 1 Bahrain 91.4% compare
  2. 3 Singapore 84.8% compare
  3. 4 Maldives 78.3% compare
  4. 5 Solomon Islands 75.9% compare

See the full ranking of 179 places →

More population data for Kuwait

All data for Kuwait →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of urban population who live in the largest city in Kuwait?
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Kuwait was 87.4% 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 Kuwait?
The highest recorded value was 87.4% in 2020.
What is the lowest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Kuwait?
The lowest recorded value was 39.7% in 1950.
How does Kuwait rank for share of urban population who live in the largest city?
Kuwait ranks 2nd out of 179 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of urban population who live in the largest city rising or falling in Kuwait?
Over the last ten years it is up 2.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Kuwait 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.