Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Benin
Benin: Share of population living in urban and rural areas was 53.4% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Benin, 1950–2025
Source: United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Benin recorded 53.4% for share of population living in urban and rural areas in 2025. That is the highest value across all 76 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.6% on the previous year and up 16.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban and rural areas in Benin peaked at 53.4% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 6.7%, in 1950.
Benin ranks 161st of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 76 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 7.8% | 6.7% | 9.4% | 10 |
| 1960s | 12.8% | 9.8% | 16.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 22.3% | 17.7% | 26.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 30.9% | 27.3% | 34.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 36.6% | 34.8% | 38.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 40.2% | 38.3% | 42.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.7% | 42.9% | 48.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.4% | 49.4% | 53.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Benin
- 158 Somalia 55.1% compare
- 159 Cote d'Ivoire 54.5% compare
- 160 Trinidad and Tobago 54.0% compare
- 162 Slovakia 53.2% compare
- 163 Bosnia and Herzegovina 52.7% compare
- 164 Romania 52.2% compare
More population data for Benin
- Population growth rate, by level of development 0.4% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 2.95 million people (2100)
- Population density 351.08 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth 0.4% (2100)
- Total fertility rate vs. wanted fertility rate 4.48 births per woman (2024)
- Refugees by country of asylum 16,232 people (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. unmet need for contraception 4.48 births per woman (2024)
- Total fertility rate vs. contraceptive prevalence 4.48 births per woman (2024)
- Natural population growth rate 2.5% (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 4.56 live births per woman (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban and rural areas in Benin?
- Share of population living in urban and rural areas in Benin was 53.4% in 2025, according to United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of population living in urban and rural areas recorded in Benin?
- The highest recorded value was 53.4% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban and rural areas recorded in Benin?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.7% in 1950.
- How does Benin rank for share of population living in urban and rural areas?
- Benin ranks 161st out of 236 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of population living in urban and rural areas rising or falling in Benin?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Benin data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population living in urban and rural areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 76 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of the population living in urban areas, based on each country's national definition.