Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Mozambique
Mozambique: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas was 15.39 million people in 2020. ▲ Rising
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Mozambique, 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 Mozambique stood at 15.39 million people. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
That represents a change of up 34.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Mozambique peaked at 15.39 million people in 2020 and was at its lowest, 3.78 million people, in 1950.
Mozambique ranks 19th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Mozambique, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 3.78 million people | — |
| 1955 | 4.02 million people | +6.2% |
| 1960 | 4.28 million people | +6.7% |
| 1965 | 4.65 million people | +8.6% |
| 1970 | 5.08 million people | +9.1% |
| 1975 | 5.67 million people | +11.6% |
| 1980 | 6.42 million people | +13.1% |
| 1985 | 6.91 million people | +7.7% |
| 1990 | 7.01 million people | +1.5% |
| 1995 | 8.14 million people | +16.1% |
| 2000 | 9.14 million people | +12.3% |
| 2005 | 10.18 million people | +11.4% |
| 2010 | 11.46 million people | +12.6% |
| 2015 | 13.03 million people | +13.7% |
| 2020 | 15.39 million people | +18.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 3.90 million people | 3.78 million people | 4.02 million people | 2 |
| 1960s | 4.47 million people | 4.28 million people | 4.65 million people | 2 |
| 1970s | 5.37 million people | 5.08 million people | 5.67 million people | 2 |
| 1980s | 6.66 million people | 6.42 million people | 6.91 million people | 2 |
| 1990s | 7.58 million people | 7.01 million people | 8.14 million people | 2 |
| 2000s | 9.66 million people | 9.14 million people | 10.18 million people | 2 |
| 2010s | 12.25 million people | 11.46 million people | 13.03 million people | 2 |
| 2020s | 15.39 million people | 15.39 million people | 15.39 million people | 1 |
Countries ranked near Mozambique
More population data for Mozambique
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate 0.3732 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate 1.08 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate 0.3732 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate 0.4521 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 63,044 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 2.61 Percent per annum (2030)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.401 % change on previous year (2100)
- World population growth 0.4% (2100)
- Population density 132.69 people per km² (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 7.33 million people (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Mozambique?
- Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas in Mozambique was 15.39 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 Mozambique?
- The highest recorded value was 15.39 million people in 2020.
- What is the lowest number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas recorded in Mozambique?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.78 million people in 1950.
- How does Mozambique rank for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Mozambique ranks 19th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas rising or falling in Mozambique?
- Over the last ten years it is up 34.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Mozambique 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.