Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Sweden
Sweden: Share of urban population who live in the largest city was 20.2% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Sweden, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Sweden stood at 20.2%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
That represents a change of up 9.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Sweden peaked at 20.2% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 13.8%, in 1950.
That places Sweden 117th 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
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 13.9% | 13.8% | 13.9% | 2 |
| 1960s | 14.9% | 14.1% | 15.7% | 2 |
| 1970s | 15.7% | 15.2% | 16.2% | 2 |
| 1980s | 15.3% | 15.2% | 15.4% | 2 |
| 1990s | 16.1% | 15.5% | 16.7% | 2 |
| 2000s | 17.3% | 17.2% | 17.3% | 2 |
| 2010s | 18.9% | 18.5% | 19.3% | 2 |
| 2020s | 20.2% | 20.2% | 20.2% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
More population data for Sweden
- Population growth rate, by level of development -0.1% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 479,660 people (2100)
- Population density 27.91 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth -0.1% (2100)
- Total fertility rate vs. wanted fertility rate 1.43 births per woman (2024)
- Refugees by country of asylum 163,029 people (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. unmet need for contraception 1.43 births per woman (2024)
- Total fertility rate vs. contraceptive prevalence 1.43 births per woman (2024)
- Natural population growth rate 0.0% (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 1.43 live births per woman (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of urban population who live in the largest city in Sweden?
- Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Sweden was 20.2% 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 Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 20.2% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.8% in 1950.
- How does Sweden rank for share of urban population who live in the largest city?
- Sweden ranks 117th out of 179 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of urban population who live in the largest city rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sweden 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.