Rural population growth (annual %) in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Rural population growth (annual %) was -0.9% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Rural population growth in Sri Lanka, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2025, rural population growth in Sri Lanka stood at -0.9%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 23.9% on the previous year and down 232.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population growth in Sri Lanka peaked at 2.3% in 1996 and was at its lowest, -3.0%, in 2013.
That places Sri Lanka 166th out of 210 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Rural population growth (annual %) in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.9% | — |
| 1962 | 1.9% | +1.2% |
| 1963 | 1.9% | +2.6% |
| 1964 | 1.9% | -1.7% |
| 1965 | 1.8% | -6.3% |
| 1966 | 1.7% | -4.9% |
| 1967 | 1.7% | -0.5% |
| 1968 | 1.7% | +2.1% |
| 1969 | 1.8% | +2.1% |
| 1970 | 1.8% | +3.8% |
| 1971 | 1.9% | +5.5% |
| 1972 | 2.0% | +4.7% |
| 1973 | 2.0% | -1.6% |
| 1974 | 1.9% | -2.8% |
| 1975 | 1.9% | -0.8% |
| 1976 | 1.9% | +1.3% |
| 1977 | 2.0% | +1.1% |
| 1978 | 2.0% | +2.0% |
| 1979 | 2.0% | +1.8% |
| 1980 | 2.0% | -1.8% |
| 1981 | 1.9% | -6.8% |
| 1982 | 1.5% | -21.0% |
| 1983 | 1.0% | -32.6% |
| 1984 | 0.7% | -25.6% |
| 1985 | 1.1% | +50.2% |
| 1986 | 1.7% | +52.2% |
| 1987 | 1.7% | +0.6% |
| 1988 | 1.6% | -7.8% |
| 1989 | 1.6% | +3.4% |
| 1990 | 1.2% | -25.0% |
| 1991 | 1.3% | +8.8% |
| 1992 | 2.2% | +62.3% |
| 1993 | 2.2% | +4.0% |
| 1994 | 2.0% | -12.1% |
| 1995 | 2.1% | +8.0% |
| 1996 | 2.3% | +10.3% |
| 1997 | 2.3% | -3.5% |
| 1998 | 2.2% | -3.4% |
| 1999 | 2.1% | -4.8% |
| 2000 | 2.0% | -5.7% |
| 2001 | 1.6% | -16.9% |
| 2002 | 1.0% | -38.8% |
| 2003 | 0.6% | -40.1% |
| 2004 | 0.5% | -23.2% |
| 2005 | 0.3% | -26.0% |
| 2006 | 0.3% | -12.7% |
| 2007 | 0.2% | -17.3% |
| 2008 | 0.2% | -33.7% |
| 2009 | 0.1% | -66.1% |
| 2010 | -0.0% | -136.6% |
| 2011 | -0.0% | +66.3% |
| 2012 | 0.2% | -644.5% |
| 2013 | -3.0% | -1745.5% |
| 2014 | 0.7% | -123.6% |
| 2015 | 0.7% | -1.6% |
| 2016 | 0.9% | +31.0% |
| 2017 | 0.9% | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 0.8% | -14.5% |
| 2019 | 0.4% | -49.4% |
| 2020 | 0.3% | -19.5% |
| 2021 | 0.9% | +170.1% |
| 2022 | -0.1% | -110.2% |
| 2023 | -0.8% | +859.5% |
| 2024 | -0.7% | -12.4% |
| 2025 | -0.9% | +23.9% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's -0.9% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is -0.6%, 1.5× the median. (59 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's -0.9% is below the median for South Asia, which is -0.7%, 1.4× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Rural population growth (annual %) in Sri Lanka changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | -1745.5% | 0.2% | -3.0% |
| 2023 | -859.5% | -0.1% | -0.8% |
| 2012 | +644.5% | -0.0% | 0.2% |
| 2021 | +170.1% | 0.3% | 0.9% |
| 2010 | -136.6% | 0.1% | -0.0% |
| 2014 | +123.6% | -3.0% | 0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.8% | 1.7% | 1.9% | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.0% | 1.8% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.5% | 0.7% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.0% | 1.2% | 2.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.7% | 0.1% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.2% | -3.0% | 0.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.2% | -0.9% | 0.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More agriculture & rural data for Sri Lanka
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 9.1 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0836 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 418.3 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9172 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.7955 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 8.4% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 8.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 3.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population growth in Sri Lanka?
- Rural population growth in Sri Lanka was -0.9% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population growth recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 2.3% in 1996.
- What is the lowest rural population growth recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was -3.0% in 2013.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for rural population growth?
- Sri Lanka ranks 166th out of 210 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population growth rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 232.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Annual rural population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear rural population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. 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.