Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Portugal
Portugal: Share of urban population who live in the largest city was 25.5% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Portugal, 1950–2020
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 Portugal is 25.5%, measured in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
That represents a change of up 8.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Portugal peaked at 25.5% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 17.3%, in 1950.
Portugal ranks 92nd 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.
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Portugal, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 17.3% | — |
| 1955 | 18.1% | +4.5% |
| 1960 | 18.5% | +2.3% |
| 1965 | 19.5% | +5.5% |
| 1970 | 20.8% | +6.6% |
| 1975 | 21.6% | +4.1% |
| 1980 | 23.3% | +7.5% |
| 1985 | 23.1% | -0.7% |
| 1990 | 23.0% | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 23.9% | +4.0% |
| 2000 | 23.6% | -1.2% |
| 2005 | 23.4% | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 23.5% | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 24.5% | +4.4% |
| 2020 | 25.5% | +3.7% |
Portugal compared with similar countries
- Portugal's 25.5% is below the median for high income countries, which is 29.2%, 87% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Portugal's 25.5% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 24.1%, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 17.7% | 17.3% | 18.1% | 2 |
| 1960s | 19.0% | 18.5% | 19.5% | 2 |
| 1970s | 21.2% | 20.8% | 21.6% | 2 |
| 1980s | 23.2% | 23.1% | 23.3% | 2 |
| 1990s | 23.5% | 23.0% | 23.9% | 2 |
| 2000s | 23.5% | 23.4% | 23.6% | 2 |
| 2010s | 24.0% | 23.5% | 24.5% | 2 |
| 2020s | 25.5% | 25.5% | 25.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Portugal
More population data for Portugal
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.4941 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.0538 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -4.39 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.0538 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development -0.0% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 396,215 people (2100)
- Population density 95.56 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth -0.0% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate 0.0558 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population -0.2816 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of urban population who live in the largest city in Portugal?
- Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Portugal was 25.5% 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 Portugal?
- The highest recorded value was 25.5% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Portugal?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.3% in 1950.
- How does Portugal rank for share of urban population who live in the largest city?
- Portugal ranks 92nd out of 179 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of urban population who live in the largest city rising or falling in Portugal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Portugal 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.