Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Tanzania
Tanzania: Share of urban population who live in the largest city was 21.0% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Tanzania, 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 Tanzania stood at 21.0%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 18.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of urban population who live in the largest city in Tanzania peaked at 21.0% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 5.2%, in 1950.
Tanzania ranks 111th 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.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 5.4% | 5.2% | 5.7% | 2 |
| 1960s | 6.0% | 5.9% | 6.2% | 2 |
| 1970s | 7.2% | 6.8% | 7.6% | 2 |
| 1980s | 10.3% | 10.0% | 10.7% | 2 |
| 1990s | 13.3% | 13.2% | 13.4% | 2 |
| 2000s | 14.9% | 14.3% | 15.6% | 2 |
| 2010s | 18.8% | 17.8% | 19.8% | 2 |
| 2020s | 21.0% | 21.0% | 21.0% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Tanzania
More population data for Tanzania
- Population growth rate, by level of development 0.9% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 20.58 million people (2100)
- Population density 296.72 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth 0.9% (2100)
- Total fertility rate vs. wanted fertility rate 4.54 births per woman (2024)
- Refugees by country of asylum 176,859 people (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. unmet need for contraception 4.54 births per woman (2024)
- Total fertility rate vs. contraceptive prevalence 4.54 births per woman (2024)
- Natural population growth rate 2.9% (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 4.61 live births per woman (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of urban population who live in the largest city in Tanzania?
- Share of urban population who live in the largest city in Tanzania was 21.0% 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 Tanzania?
- The highest recorded value was 21.0% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of urban population who live in the largest city recorded in Tanzania?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.2% in 1950.
- How does Tanzania rank for share of urban population who live in the largest city?
- Tanzania ranks 111th out of 179 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of urban population who live in the largest city rising or falling in Tanzania?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Tanzania 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.