France vs Germany: Rural population

France
14.54 million
in 2025
Germany
14.91 million
in 2025
France rank
39th
Germany rank
36th

Rural population over time

  • France
  • Germany
05.0M10.0M15.0M20.0M196019922025

How they compare

Germany currently reports 14.91 million against 14.54 million in France, a difference of 375,200.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 66 shared years of data; in 1960 it was France ahead.

France ranks 39th and Germany ranks 36th of 215 countries.

Germany has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade France Germany Difference Ahead
1960s 16.60 million 16.69 million 89,390 Germany
1970s 14.67 million 15.85 million 1.18 million Germany
1980s 14.96 million 15.65 million 690,890 Germany
1990s 14.83 million 16.21 million 1.38 million Germany
2000s 14.34 million 16.32 million 1.98 million Germany
2010s 14.69 million 15.76 million 1.06 million Germany
2020s 14.48 million 15.14 million 660,283 Germany

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher rural population, France or Germany?
Germany, at 14.91 million against 14.54 million in France as of 2025.
What is the difference in rural population between France and Germany?
375,200, with Germany ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for France and Germany?
66 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2025.
How do France and Germany rank globally for rural population?
France ranks 39th and Germany ranks 36th of 215 countries.
Where does this data come from?
World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as Rural population. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Rural population
Source
World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
264 places, 17,394 data points, 1960–2025
Last refreshed

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. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.