Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Nepal
Nepal: Share of urban population who live in the largest city was 14.7% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Nepal, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Nepal recorded 14.7% for share of urban population who live in the largest city in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
That represents a change of up 22.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Nepal peaked at 14.7% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 6.7%, in 1980.
Nepal ranks 145th of 179 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Nepal, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 8.2% | — |
| 1955 | 7.5% | -8.2% |
| 1960 | 7.2% | -3.8% |
| 1965 | 7.1% | -1.9% |
| 1970 | 6.9% | -3.0% |
| 1975 | 6.9% | -0.0% |
| 1980 | 6.7% | -2.3% |
| 1985 | 7.3% | +8.8% |
| 1990 | 7.9% | +8.5% |
| 1995 | 8.3% | +4.6% |
| 2000 | 9.2% | +10.5% |
| 2005 | 10.4% | +13.4% |
| 2010 | 12.0% | +15.0% |
| 2015 | 13.7% | +14.5% |
| 2020 | 14.7% | +7.1% |
Nepal compared with similar countries
- Nepal's 14.7% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 24.9%, 59% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Nepal's 14.7% is below the median for South Asia, which is 23.0%, 64% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 7.9% | 7.5% | 8.2% | 2 |
| 1960s | 7.2% | 7.1% | 7.2% | 2 |
| 1970s | 6.9% | 6.9% | 6.9% | 2 |
| 1980s | 7.0% | 6.7% | 7.3% | 2 |
| 1990s | 8.1% | 7.9% | 8.3% | 2 |
| 2000s | 9.8% | 9.2% | 10.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 12.8% | 12.0% | 13.7% | 2 |
| 2020s | 14.7% | 14.7% | 14.7% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
More population data for Nepal
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.6271 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.593 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate 0.0333 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.593 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development -0.6% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 1.41 million people (2100)
- Population density 222.05 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth -0.6% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.8575 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.8872 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of urban population who live in the largest city in Nepal?
- Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Nepal was 14.7% 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 Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 14.7% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.7% in 1980.
- How does Nepal rank for share of urban population who live in the largest city?
- Nepal ranks 145th out of 179 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of urban population who live in the largest city rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 22.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nepal 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.
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About this data
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.