Rural population in High income
High income: Rural population was 281.21 million in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
281.21 million
Change on year
down 0.2%
Rank
29th
of 47 groups
All-time high
350.69 million
in 1960
All-time low
280.58 million
in 2011
Years of data
66
1960–2025
Rural population in High income, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
In 2025, rural population in High income stood at 281.21 million.
The figure is down 0.2% on the previous year and down 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in High income peaked at 350.69 million in 1960 and was at its lowest, 280.58 million, in 2011.
High income ranks 29th of 47 groups 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 in High income, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 350.69 million | — |
| 1961 | 349.43 million | -0.4% |
| 1962 | 348.22 million | -0.3% |
| 1963 | 346.64 million | -0.5% |
| 1964 | 344.67 million | -0.6% |
| 1965 | 342.54 million | -0.6% |
| 1966 | 339.96 million | -0.8% |
| 1967 | 337.37 million | -0.8% |
| 1968 | 334.91 million | -0.7% |
| 1969 | 332.55 million | -0.7% |
| 1970 | 330.61 million | -0.6% |
| 1971 | 329.51 million | -0.3% |
| 1972 | 327.75 million | -0.5% |
| 1973 | 325.68 million | -0.6% |
| 1974 | 323.37 million | -0.7% |
| 1975 | 322.06 million | -0.4% |
| 1976 | 320.92 million | -0.4% |
| 1977 | 319.90 million | -0.3% |
| 1978 | 319.26 million | -0.2% |
| 1979 | 318.44 million | -0.3% |
| 1980 | 317.40 million | -0.3% |
| 1981 | 316.66 million | -0.2% |
| 1982 | 315.71 million | -0.3% |
| 1983 | 314.80 million | -0.3% |
| 1984 | 313.86 million | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 312.92 million | -0.3% |
| 1986 | 311.69 million | -0.4% |
| 1987 | 310.42 million | -0.4% |
| 1988 | 309.23 million | -0.4% |
| 1989 | 308.27 million | -0.3% |
| 1990 | 307.69 million | -0.2% |
| 1991 | 307.37 million | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 307.37 million | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 307.24 million | -0.0% |
| 1994 | 306.51 million | -0.2% |
| 1995 | 305.48 million | -0.3% |
| 1996 | 304.03 million | -0.5% |
| 1997 | 302.72 million | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 301.67 million | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 301.10 million | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 299.81 million | -0.4% |
| 2001 | 298.06 million | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 295.50 million | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 292.52 million | -1.0% |
| 2004 | 289.65 million | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 287.34 million | -0.8% |
| 2006 | 285.44 million | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 283.85 million | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 282.66 million | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 281.92 million | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 281.02 million | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 280.58 million | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 280.89 million | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 281.04 million | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 281.25 million | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 281.57 million | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 281.73 million | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 282.07 million | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 282.14 million | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 282.31 million | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 282.28 million | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 281.02 million | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 280.94 million | -0.0% |
| 2023 | 281.38 million | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 281.71 million | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 281.21 million | -0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 342.70 million | 332.55 million | 350.69 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 323.75 million | 318.44 million | 330.61 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 313.10 million | 308.27 million | 317.40 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 305.12 million | 301.10 million | 307.69 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 289.67 million | 281.92 million | 299.81 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 281.46 million | 280.58 million | 282.31 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 281.42 million | 280.94 million | 282.28 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near High income
- 26 Mozambique 22.37 million compare
- 27 Madagascar 21.97 million compare
- 28 Iran 20.91 million compare
- 29 Malawi 18.31 million compare
- 30 Uzbekistan 18.15 million compare
- 31 Italy 17.86 million compare
- 32 Sri Lanka 17.31 million compare
More agriculture & rural data for High income
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0125 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Rural population 19.8% (2025)
- Rural population growth -0.2% (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 2.41 % change on previous year (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 1.3% (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 904.10 billion current US$ (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.2% (2024)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1975 units per person (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in High income?
- Rural population in High income was 281.21 million in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in High income?
- The highest recorded value was 350.69 million in 1960.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in High income?
- The lowest recorded value was 280.58 million in 2011.
- How does High income rank for rural population?
- High income ranks 29th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in High income?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this High income data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
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.