Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Bulgaria
Bulgaria: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas was 2.77 million people in 2020. ▼ Falling
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Bulgaria, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
In 2020, number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Bulgaria stood at 2.77 million people. That is the lowest value across all 15 years on record.
That represents a change of down 6.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Bulgaria peaked at 3.50 million people in 1980 and was at its lowest, 2.77 million people, in 2020.
Bulgaria ranks 89th of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 15 years of available data.
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Bulgaria, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 3.40 million people | — |
| 1955 | 3.41 million people | +0.5% |
| 1960 | 3.44 million people | +0.8% |
| 1965 | 3.46 million people | +0.6% |
| 1970 | 3.48 million people | +0.5% |
| 1975 | 3.49 million people | +0.2% |
| 1980 | 3.50 million people | +0.5% |
| 1985 | 3.46 million people | -1.2% |
| 1990 | 3.42 million people | -1.2% |
| 1995 | 3.27 million people | -4.5% |
| 2000 | 3.16 million people | -3.2% |
| 2005 | 3.07 million people | -3.1% |
| 2010 | 2.96 million people | -3.3% |
| 2015 | 2.87 million people | -3.2% |
| 2020 | 2.77 million people | -3.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 3.41 million people | 3.40 million people | 3.41 million people | 2 |
| 1960s | 3.45 million people | 3.44 million people | 3.46 million people | 2 |
| 1970s | 3.48 million people | 3.48 million people | 3.49 million people | 2 |
| 1980s | 3.48 million people | 3.46 million people | 3.50 million people | 2 |
| 1990s | 3.34 million people | 3.27 million people | 3.42 million people | 2 |
| 2000s | 3.11 million people | 3.07 million people | 3.16 million people | 2 |
| 2010s | 2.92 million people | 2.87 million people | 2.96 million people | 2 |
| 2020s | 2.77 million people | 2.77 million people | 2.77 million people | 1 |
Countries ranked near Bulgaria
More population data for Bulgaria
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.7245 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -2.34 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.7245 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -1.18 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 5,187 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population -0.8803 Percent per annum (2030)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.921 % change on previous year (2100)
- World population growth -0.7% (2100)
- Population density 32.53 people per km² (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 146,527 people (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Bulgaria?
- Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Bulgaria was 2.77 million people in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas recorded in Bulgaria?
- The highest recorded value was 3.50 million people in 1980.
- What is the lowest number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas recorded in Bulgaria?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.77 million people in 2020.
- How does Bulgaria rank for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Bulgaria ranks 89th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas rising or falling in Bulgaria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Bulgaria data come from?
- The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimated number of people living in rural areas. Rural areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.