Japan vs North Korea: Rural population
Japan
9.50 million
in 2025
North Korea
9.52 million
in 2025
Japan rank
59th
North Korea rank
58th
Rural population over time
- Japan
- North Korea
How they compare
North Korea currently reports 9.52 million against 9.50 million in Japan, a difference of 16,080.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 66 shared years of data; in 1960 it was Japan ahead.
Japan ranks 59th and North Korea ranks 58th of 217 countries.
Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Japan | North Korea | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 31.76 million | 6.92 million | 24.84 million | Japan |
| 1970s | 27.73 million | 7.33 million | 20.40 million | Japan |
| 1980s | 28.07 million | 8.28 million | 19.78 million | Japan |
| 1990s | 27.64 million | 9.20 million | 18.44 million | Japan |
| 2000s | 19.66 million | 9.78 million | 9.88 million | Japan |
| 2010s | 11.12 million | 9.88 million | 1.24 million | Japan |
| 2020s | 9.94 million | 9.65 million | 295,077 | Japan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher rural population, Japan or North Korea?
- North Korea, at 9.52 million against 9.50 million in Japan as of 2025.
- What is the difference in rural population between Japan and North Korea?
- 16,080, with North Korea ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and North Korea?
- 66 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2025.
- How do Japan and North Korea rank globally for rural population?
- Japan ranks 59th and North Korea ranks 58th of 217 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
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.