Share urban and rural population in New Zealand

New Zealand: Share urban and rural population was 84 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
84
Change on year
up 0.1%
World rank
58th
of 236 countries
All-time high
85.94
in 2006
All-time low
55.07
in 1955
Years of data
76
1950–2025

Share urban and rural population in New Zealand, 1950–2025

020406080195019872025

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

New Zealand recorded 84 for share urban and rural population in 2025.

That represents a change of up 0.1% on the previous year and down 1.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share urban and rural population in New Zealand peaked at 85.94 in 2006 and was at its lowest, 55.07, in 1955.

That places New Zealand 58th out of 236 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 76 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 56.05 55.07 60.28 10
1960s 68.33 62.38 77.91 10
1970s 82.38 80.45 83.3 10
1980s 83.83 83.41 84.55 10
1990s 85.3 84.78 85.66 10
2000s 85.86 85.71 85.94 10
2010s 85.03 83.8 85.86 10
2020s 83.89 83.81 84 6

Countries ranked near New Zealand

  1. 55 Switzerland 85.73 compare
  2. 56 Peru 85.6 compare
  3. 57 Saudi Arabia 84.61 compare
  4. 59 Norway 83.57 compare
  5. 60 United Kingdom 83.32 compare
  6. 61 Canada 82.88 compare

See the full ranking of 237 places →

More population data for New Zealand

All data for New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is share urban and rural population in New Zealand?
Share urban and rural population in New Zealand was 84 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest share urban and rural population recorded in New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 85.94 in 2006.
What is the lowest share urban and rural population recorded in New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was 55.07 in 1955.
How does New Zealand rank for share urban and rural population?
New Zealand ranks 58th out of 236 countries with data for 2025.
Is share urban and rural population rising or falling in New Zealand?
Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this New Zealand data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Share urban and rural population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share urban and rural population in New Zealand. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 21 August 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/share-urban-and-rural-population/new-zealand/

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About this data

Indicator
Share urban and rural population
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
237 places, 18,012 data points, 1950–2025
Last refreshed