Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Australia
Australia: Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas was 48.9% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Australia, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Australia stood at 48.9%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
That represents a change of up 11.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Australia peaked at 48.9% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 28.5%, in 1950.
That places Australia 59th out of 236 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 28.5% | — |
| 1955 | 28.8% | +0.8% |
| 1960 | 29.8% | +3.5% |
| 1965 | 30.8% | +3.4% |
| 1970 | 32.6% | +5.7% |
| 1975 | 33.9% | +4.0% |
| 1980 | 35.7% | +5.3% |
| 1985 | 37.6% | +5.3% |
| 1990 | 38.4% | +2.2% |
| 1995 | 41.6% | +8.5% |
| 2000 | 40.6% | -2.5% |
| 2005 | 41.7% | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 44.0% | +5.7% |
| 2015 | 46.4% | +5.4% |
| 2020 | 48.9% | +5.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 28.7% | 28.5% | 28.8% | 2 |
| 1960s | 30.3% | 29.8% | 30.8% | 2 |
| 1970s | 33.2% | 32.6% | 33.9% | 2 |
| 1980s | 36.6% | 35.7% | 37.6% | 2 |
| 1990s | 40.0% | 38.4% | 41.6% | 2 |
| 2000s | 41.1% | 40.6% | 41.7% | 2 |
| 2010s | 45.2% | 44.0% | 46.4% | 2 |
| 2020s | 48.9% | 48.9% | 48.9% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More population data for Australia
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate 0.2553 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate 0.5057 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate 0.5755 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate 0.5057 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development 0.5% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 2.09 million people (2100)
- Population density 5.61 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth 0.5% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate 0.2773 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.8589 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Australia?
- Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Australia was 48.9% in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 48.9% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 28.5% in 1950.
- How does Australia rank for share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Australia ranks 59th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia 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 Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas. 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
Estimated share of the population living in cities. Cities are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.