Rural population, per capita in Lesotho
Lesotho: Rural population, per capita was 0.5533 units per person in 2025. ▼ Falling
Rural population, per capita in Lesotho, 1960–2025
Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in units per person.
Analysis
The most recent figure for rural population, per capita in Lesotho is 0.5533 units per person, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 66 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.8% on the previous year and down 16.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population, per capita in Lesotho peaked at 0.9634 units per person in 1960 and was at its lowest, 0.5533 units per person, in 2025.
Lesotho ranks 55th of 216 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population, per capita in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | units per person | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0.9634 units per person | — |
| 1961 | 0.9576 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1962 | 0.9514 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1963 | 0.9453 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1964 | 0.9393 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1965 | 0.9338 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1966 | 0.929 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1967 | 0.9241 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1968 | 0.9188 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1969 | 0.9132 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1970 | 0.9078 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1971 | 0.9025 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1972 | 0.8978 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1973 | 0.8938 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1974 | 0.8906 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1975 | 0.8887 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1976 | 0.888 units per person | -0.1% |
| 1977 | 0.8879 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1978 | 0.8878 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.8877 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.8876 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1981 | 0.8876 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.8875 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.8875 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.8874 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.8872 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.887 units per person | -0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.8854 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1988 | 0.882 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1989 | 0.8771 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1990 | 0.8712 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1991 | 0.8644 units per person | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 0.8571 units per person | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 0.8496 units per person | -0.9% |
| 1994 | 0.8422 units per person | -0.9% |
| 1995 | 0.8353 units per person | -0.8% |
| 1996 | 0.8291 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1997 | 0.8234 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1998 | 0.8178 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1999 | 0.8123 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2000 | 0.8067 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 0.801 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2002 | 0.7951 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 0.7888 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2004 | 0.782 units per person | -0.9% |
| 2005 | 0.7747 units per person | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 0.7667 units per person | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 0.7578 units per person | -1.2% |
| 2008 | 0.748 units per person | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 0.7374 units per person | -1.4% |
| 2010 | 0.726 units per person | -1.5% |
| 2011 | 0.7138 units per person | -1.7% |
| 2012 | 0.701 units per person | -1.8% |
| 2013 | 0.6876 units per person | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 0.6736 units per person | -2.0% |
| 2015 | 0.6591 units per person | -2.2% |
| 2016 | 0.6449 units per person | -2.2% |
| 2017 | 0.6347 units per person | -1.6% |
| 2018 | 0.6243 units per person | -1.6% |
| 2019 | 0.614 units per person | -1.7% |
| 2020 | 0.6037 units per person | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 0.5935 units per person | -1.7% |
| 2022 | 0.5833 units per person | -1.7% |
| 2023 | 0.5732 units per person | -1.7% |
| 2024 | 0.5632 units per person | -1.7% |
| 2025 | 0.5533 units per person | -1.8% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 0.5533 units per person is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.4913 units per person, 1.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 0.5533 units per person is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.5511 units per person, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.9376 units per person | 0.9132 units per person | 0.9634 units per person | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.8933 units per person | 0.8877 units per person | 0.9078 units per person | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.8856 units per person | 0.8771 units per person | 0.8876 units per person | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.8402 units per person | 0.8123 units per person | 0.8712 units per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.7758 units per person | 0.7374 units per person | 0.8067 units per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.6679 units per person | 0.614 units per person | 0.726 units per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.5784 units per person | 0.5533 units per person | 0.6037 units per person | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
- 52 Moldova 0.5627 units per person compare
- 53 Togo 0.5561 units per person compare
- 54 Central African Republic 0.5545 units per person compare
- 56 Democratic Republic of Congo 0.5489 units per person compare
- 57 Seychelles 0.5452 units per person compare
- 58 Zambia 0.5408 units per person compare
More agriculture & rural data for Lesotho
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 5.38 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0649 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 70.63 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.6715 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0005 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 6.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 6.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 5.1% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
- Rural population 55.3% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population, per capita in Lesotho?
- Rural population, per capita in Lesotho was 0.5533 units per person in 2025, according to Statizoid (derived).
- What is the highest rural population, per capita recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 0.9634 units per person in 1960.
- What is the lowest rural population, per capita recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5533 units per person in 2025.
- How does Lesotho rank for rural population, per capita?
- Lesotho ranks 55th out of 216 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population, per capita rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Rural population, per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page.
How this figure is calculated
Rural population divided by Population, total, matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.
Rural population ÷ Population, total
Computed from
- Rural population World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN)
- Population, total World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN)
Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.
About this data
Rural population divided by Population, total, matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.