Rural population in Upper middle income
Upper middle income: Rural population was 31.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Rural population in Upper middle income, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
Upper middle income recorded 31.8% for rural population in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.3% on the previous year and down 17.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Upper middle income peaked at 74.4% in 1963 and was at its lowest, 31.8%, in 2025.
Upper middle income ranks 35th of 45 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Upper middle income, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 73.8% | — |
| 1961 | 73.6% | -0.2% |
| 1962 | 74.4% | +1.0% |
| 1963 | 74.4% | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 73.3% | -1.4% |
| 1965 | 73.2% | -0.1% |
| 1966 | 73.0% | -0.3% |
| 1967 | 72.8% | -0.3% |
| 1968 | 72.6% | -0.3% |
| 1969 | 72.4% | -0.3% |
| 1970 | 72.2% | -0.2% |
| 1971 | 72.0% | -0.3% |
| 1972 | 71.8% | -0.3% |
| 1973 | 71.5% | -0.5% |
| 1974 | 71.2% | -0.4% |
| 1975 | 70.8% | -0.6% |
| 1976 | 70.4% | -0.6% |
| 1977 | 70.0% | -0.6% |
| 1978 | 69.4% | -0.8% |
| 1979 | 68.5% | -1.3% |
| 1980 | 68.0% | -0.8% |
| 1981 | 67.2% | -1.1% |
| 1982 | 66.7% | -0.8% |
| 1983 | 65.8% | -1.3% |
| 1984 | 64.8% | -1.6% |
| 1985 | 64.1% | -1.0% |
| 1986 | 63.4% | -1.1% |
| 1987 | 62.7% | -1.1% |
| 1988 | 62.1% | -0.9% |
| 1989 | 61.6% | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 61.4% | -0.4% |
| 1991 | 60.7% | -1.1% |
| 1992 | 60.1% | -0.9% |
| 1993 | 59.6% | -1.0% |
| 1994 | 59.0% | -1.0% |
| 1995 | 58.4% | -1.0% |
| 1996 | 57.4% | -1.8% |
| 1997 | 56.3% | -1.8% |
| 1998 | 55.3% | -1.9% |
| 1999 | 54.2% | -1.9% |
| 2000 | 53.0% | -2.1% |
| 2001 | 52.1% | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 51.1% | -2.0% |
| 2003 | 50.1% | -2.0% |
| 2004 | 49.2% | -1.8% |
| 2005 | 48.3% | -1.8% |
| 2006 | 47.3% | -2.0% |
| 2007 | 46.3% | -2.2% |
| 2008 | 45.5% | -1.8% |
| 2009 | 44.5% | -2.1% |
| 2010 | 43.8% | -1.6% |
| 2011 | 42.3% | -3.5% |
| 2012 | 41.4% | -2.1% |
| 2013 | 40.3% | -2.5% |
| 2014 | 39.4% | -2.4% |
| 2015 | 38.3% | -2.7% |
| 2016 | 37.3% | -2.5% |
| 2017 | 36.4% | -2.4% |
| 2018 | 35.5% | -2.5% |
| 2019 | 34.7% | -2.3% |
| 2020 | 34.1% | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 33.3% | -2.3% |
| 2022 | 32.9% | -1.3% |
| 2023 | 32.6% | -1.1% |
| 2024 | 32.2% | -1.1% |
| 2025 | 31.8% | -1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 73.4% | 72.4% | 74.4% | 10 |
| 1970s | 70.8% | 68.5% | 72.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 64.7% | 61.6% | 68.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 58.2% | 54.2% | 61.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 48.7% | 44.5% | 53.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 38.9% | 34.7% | 43.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 32.8% | 31.8% | 34.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Upper middle income
More agriculture & rural data for Upper middle income
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 3.4 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 2.31 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Rural population 978.15 million (2025)
- Rural population growth -0.9% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.1% (2024)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3177 units per person (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 748.69 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9329 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Upper middle income?
- Rural population in Upper middle income was 31.8% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Upper middle income?
- The highest recorded value was 74.4% in 1963.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Upper middle income?
- The lowest recorded value was 31.8% in 2025.
- How does Upper middle income rank for rural population?
- Upper middle income ranks 35th out of 45 groups with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Upper middle income?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Upper middle income data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population (% of total population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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.