Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico: Share of urban population who live in the largest city was 25.9% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
25.9%
World rank
88th
of 179 countries
All-time high
30.9%
in 1990
All-time low
12.7%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

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

01020301950198520201950: 12.7 %1955: 13.2 %1960: 13.6 %1965: 14.1 %1970: 14.7 %1975: 15.2 %1980: 16.8 %1985: 22.6 %1990: 30.9 %1995: 29.6 %2000: 28.9 %2005: 27.9 %2010: 27.7 %2015: 28.7 %2020: 25.9 %

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

Analysis

Puerto Rico recorded 25.9% for share of urban population who live in the largest city in 2020.

That represents a change of down 6.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Puerto Rico peaked at 30.9% in 1990 and was at its lowest, 12.7%, in 1950.

That places Puerto Rico 88th out of 179 countries with data for 2020, putting it 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 12.9% 12.7% 13.2% 2
1960s 13.9% 13.6% 14.1% 2
1970s 14.9% 14.7% 15.2% 2
1980s 19.7% 16.8% 22.6% 2
1990s 30.3% 29.6% 30.9% 2
2000s 28.4% 27.9% 28.9% 2
2010s 28.2% 27.7% 28.7% 2
2020s 25.9% 25.9% 25.9% 1

Countries ranked near Puerto Rico

  1. 85 North Macedonia 27.1% compare
  2. 86 Hungary 26.7% compare
  3. 87 Sri Lanka 26.0% compare
  4. 89 Moldova 25.9% compare
  5. 90 Bulgaria 25.9% compare
  6. 91 Honduras 25.7% compare

See the full ranking of 179 places →

More population data for Puerto Rico

All data for Puerto Rico →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of urban population who live in the largest city in Puerto Rico?
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Puerto Rico was 25.9% 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 Puerto Rico?
The highest recorded value was 30.9% in 1990.
What is the lowest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Puerto Rico?
The lowest recorded value was 12.7% in 1950.
How does Puerto Rico rank for share of urban population who live in the largest city?
Puerto Rico ranks 88th out of 179 countries with data for 2020.
Is share of urban population who live in the largest city rising or falling in Puerto Rico?
Over the last ten years it is down 6.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Puerto Rico 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.