Rural population, per capita in Malawi
Malawi: Rural population, per capita was 0.8241 units per person in 2025. ▼ Falling
Rural population, per capita in Malawi, 1960–2025
Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in units per person.
Analysis
In 2025, rural population, per capita in Malawi stood at 0.8241 units per person. That is the lowest value across all 66 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and down 2.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population, per capita in Malawi peaked at 0.9596 units per person in 1960 and was at its lowest, 0.8241 units per person, in 2025.
That places Malawi 4th out of 216 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population, per capita in Malawi, year by year
| Year | units per person | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0.9596 units per person | — |
| 1961 | 0.9586 units per person | -0.1% |
| 1962 | 0.9576 units per person | -0.1% |
| 1963 | 0.9566 units per person | -0.1% |
| 1964 | 0.9555 units per person | -0.1% |
| 1965 | 0.9543 units per person | -0.1% |
| 1966 | 0.9531 units per person | -0.1% |
| 1967 | 0.9516 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1968 | 0.9492 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1969 | 0.9462 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1970 | 0.9427 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1971 | 0.9388 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 0.9347 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1973 | 0.9305 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1974 | 0.9264 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1975 | 0.9224 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1976 | 0.9189 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1977 | 0.9158 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1978 | 0.9132 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1979 | 0.9108 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1980 | 0.9087 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1981 | 0.9066 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1982 | 0.9046 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1983 | 0.9027 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 0.9007 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1985 | 0.8986 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1986 | 0.8963 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1987 | 0.8938 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1988 | 0.8909 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 0.8875 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1990 | 0.8838 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1991 | 0.8797 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1992 | 0.8755 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1993 | 0.8713 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1994 | 0.8673 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1995 | 0.8636 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1996 | 0.8604 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1997 | 0.8577 units per person | -0.3% |
| 1998 | 0.8558 units per person | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 0.8544 units per person | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 0.8532 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 0.8522 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 0.8513 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 0.8504 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 0.8497 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 0.849 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 0.8482 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 0.8475 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 0.8468 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 0.846 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 0.8452 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 0.8445 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 0.8437 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 0.843 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 0.8423 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 0.8417 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 0.841 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 0.8404 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 0.8398 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 0.8386 units per person | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 0.837 units per person | -0.2% |
| 2021 | 0.8351 units per person | -0.2% |
| 2022 | 0.8329 units per person | -0.3% |
| 2023 | 0.8302 units per person | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 0.8273 units per person | -0.4% |
| 2025 | 0.8241 units per person | -0.4% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 0.8241 units per person is above the median for low income countries, which is 0.6546 units per person, 1.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 0.8241 units per person is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.5511 units per person, 1.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.9542 units per person | 0.9462 units per person | 0.9596 units per person | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.9254 units per person | 0.9108 units per person | 0.9427 units per person | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.899 units per person | 0.8875 units per person | 0.9087 units per person | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.867 units per person | 0.8544 units per person | 0.8838 units per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.8494 units per person | 0.846 units per person | 0.8532 units per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.842 units per person | 0.8386 units per person | 0.8452 units per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8311 units per person | 0.8241 units per person | 0.837 units per person | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More agriculture & rural data for Malawi
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 24.6 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.3003 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 201.66 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.19 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0012 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 30.0% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 30.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.7% (2024)
- Rural population 82.4% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population, per capita in Malawi?
- Rural population, per capita in Malawi was 0.8241 units per person in 2025, according to Statizoid (derived).
- What is the highest rural population, per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 0.9596 units per person in 1960.
- What is the lowest rural population, per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.8241 units per person in 2025.
- How does Malawi rank for rural population, per capita?
- Malawi ranks 4th out of 216 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population, per capita rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi 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.