Malawi vs Papua New Guinea: Rural population (% of total population) (Rural World Urbanization)
Malawi
82.4%
in 2025
Papua New Guinea
84.2%
in 2025
Malawi rank
4th
Papua New Guinea rank
2nd
Rural population (% of total population) (Rural World Urbanization) over time
- Malawi
- Papua New Guinea
How they compare
Papua New Guinea currently reports 84.2% against 82.4% in Malawi, a difference of 1.8%.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 66 shared years of data; in 1960 it was Papua New Guinea ahead.
Malawi ranks 4th and Papua New Guinea ranks 2nd of 218 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, Malawi averaged higher in 4 and Papua New Guinea in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Malawi | Papua New Guinea | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 95.4% | 94.4% | 1.0% | Malawi |
| 1970s | 92.5% | 87.7% | 4.9% | Malawi |
| 1980s | 89.9% | 85.9% | 4.0% | Malawi |
| 1990s | 86.7% | 85.6% | 1.1% | Malawi |
| 2000s | 84.9% | 86.9% | 2.0% | Papua New Guinea |
| 2010s | 84.2% | 86.7% | 2.5% | Papua New Guinea |
| 2020s | 83.1% | 85.1% | 2.0% | Papua New Guinea |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher rural population, Malawi or Papua New Guinea?
- Papua New Guinea, at 84.2% against 82.4% in Malawi as of 2025.
- What is the difference in rural population between Malawi and Papua New Guinea?
- 1.8%, with Papua New Guinea ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Malawi and Papua New Guinea?
- 66 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2025.
- How do Malawi and Papua New Guinea rank globally for rural population?
- Malawi ranks 4th and Papua New Guinea ranks 2nd of 218 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as Rural population (% of total population). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population.