Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Malawi
Malawi: Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas was 10.8% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2020)
10.8%
World rank
188th
of 236 countries
All-time high
10.9%
in 2015
All-time low
0.0%
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020
Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Malawi, 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 Malawi stood at 10.8%.
That represents a change of up 12.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Malawi peaked at 10.9% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1950.
That places Malawi 188th out of 236 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 0.0% | — |
| 1955 | 0.0% | — |
| 1960 | 0.0% | — |
| 1965 | 0.0% | — |
| 1970 | 0.0% | — |
| 1975 | 0.0% | — |
| 1980 | 0.9% | — |
| 1985 | 3.8% | +308.3% |
| 1990 | 4.6% | +20.5% |
| 1995 | 6.0% | +31.9% |
| 2000 | 7.9% | +30.3% |
| 2005 | 8.9% | +13.8% |
| 2010 | 9.6% | +7.5% |
| 2015 | 10.9% | +12.9% |
| 2020 | 10.8% | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 2.4% | 0.9% | 3.8% | 2 |
| 1990s | 5.3% | 4.6% | 6.0% | 2 |
| 2000s | 8.4% | 7.9% | 8.9% | 2 |
| 2010s | 10.2% | 9.6% | 10.9% | 2 |
| 2020s | 10.8% | 10.8% | 10.8% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 185 Rwanda 14.0% compare
- 186 Lesotho 12.4% compare
- 187 Papua New Guinea 11.0% compare
- 189 Lao People's Democratic Republic 4.5% compare
- 190 American Samoa 0.0%
- 190 Andorra 0.0%
- 190 Anguilla 0.0%
- 190 Antigua and Barbuda 0.0%
- 190 Aruba 0.0%
- 190 Bermuda 0.0%
- 190 Bonaire Sint Eustatius and Saba 0.0%
- 190 British Virgin Islands 0.0%
- 190 Cayman Islands 0.0%
- 190 Cook Islands 0.0%
- 190 Dominica 0.0%
- 190 Eswatini 0.0% compare
- 190 Falkland Islands, Malvinas 0.0%
- 190 Faroe Islands 0.0%
- 190 Greenland 0.0%
- 190 Grenada 0.0%
- 190 Guadeloupe 0.0% compare
- 190 Guam 0.0%
- 190 Guernsey 0.0%
- 190 Isle of Man 0.0%
- 190 Kiribati 0.0%
- 190 Liechtenstein 0.0%
- 190 Marshall Islands 0.0%
- 190 Micronesia, Federated States of 0.0%
- 190 Montserrat 0.0%
- 190 Naoero 0.0%
- 190 Niue 0.0%
- 190 Northern Mariana Islands 0.0%
- 190 Palau 0.0%
- 190 Saint Barthelemy 0.0%
- 190 Saint Helena 0.0%
- 190 Saint Kitts and Nevis 0.0%
- 190 Saint Lucia 0.0%
- 190 Saint Martin (French part) 0.0%
- 190 Saint Pierre and Miquelon 0.0%
- 190 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 0.0%
- 190 Samoa 0.0%
- 190 San Marino 0.0%
- 190 Seychelles 0.0%
- 190 Sint Maarten (Dutch part) 0.0%
- 190 Tokelau 0.0%
- 190 Tonga 0.0%
- 190 Turks and Caicos Islands 0.0%
- 190 Tuvalu 0.0%
- 190 United States Virgin Islands 0.0%
- 190 Vanuatu 0.0%
- 190 Wallis and Futuna 0.0%
More population data for Malawi
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate 0.3622 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate 0.4293 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate 0.1183 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate 0.4293 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development 0.4% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 3.85 million people (2100)
- Population density 627.29 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth 0.4% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.2289 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 2.45 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Malawi?
- Share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas in Malawi was 10.8% 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 Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 10.9% in 2015.
- What is the lowest share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1950.
- How does Malawi rank for share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Malawi ranks 188th out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in cities, towns and rural areas rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malawi 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.