Rural population in Kiribati
Kiribati: Rural population was 49,975 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
49,975
Change on year
down 1.0%
World rank
183rd
of 218 countries
All-time high
57,293
in 2015
All-time low
39,980
in 1960
Years of data
66
1960–2025
Rural population in Kiribati, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
Kiribati recorded 49,975 for rural population in 2025.
The figure is down 1.0% on the previous year and down 12.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Kiribati peaked at 57,293 in 2015 and was at its lowest, 39,980, in 1960.
Kiribati ranks 183rd of 218 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Kiribati, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 39,980 | — |
| 1961 | 40,586 | +1.5% |
| 1962 | 41,100 | +1.3% |
| 1963 | 41,544 | +1.1% |
| 1964 | 41,954 | +1.0% |
| 1965 | 42,375 | +1.0% |
| 1966 | 42,519 | +0.3% |
| 1967 | 42,405 | -0.3% |
| 1968 | 42,386 | -0.0% |
| 1969 | 42,727 | +0.8% |
| 1970 | 43,401 | +1.6% |
| 1971 | 44,102 | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 44,776 | +1.5% |
| 1973 | 45,326 | +1.2% |
| 1974 | 45,217 | -0.2% |
| 1975 | 44,278 | -2.1% |
| 1976 | 43,088 | -2.7% |
| 1977 | 41,888 | -2.8% |
| 1978 | 40,959 | -2.2% |
| 1979 | 40,847 | -0.3% |
| 1980 | 41,315 | +1.1% |
| 1981 | 41,818 | +1.2% |
| 1982 | 42,372 | +1.3% |
| 1983 | 42,945 | +1.4% |
| 1984 | 43,520 | +1.3% |
| 1985 | 44,203 | +1.6% |
| 1986 | 45,052 | +1.9% |
| 1987 | 45,958 | +2.0% |
| 1988 | 46,862 | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 47,772 | +1.9% |
| 1990 | 48,666 | +1.9% |
| 1991 | 49,441 | +1.6% |
| 1992 | 50,087 | +1.3% |
| 1993 | 50,682 | +1.2% |
| 1994 | 51,223 | +1.1% |
| 1995 | 51,719 | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 52,010 | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 51,664 | -0.7% |
| 1998 | 50,938 | -1.4% |
| 1999 | 50,274 | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 50,219 | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 51,059 | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 52,131 | +2.1% |
| 2003 | 53,199 | +2.0% |
| 2004 | 54,265 | +2.0% |
| 2005 | 55,346 | +2.0% |
| 2006 | 56,275 | +1.7% |
| 2007 | 56,524 | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 56,336 | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 56,054 | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 56,026 | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 56,294 | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 56,614 | +0.6% |
| 2013 | 56,955 | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 57,212 | +0.5% |
| 2015 | 57,293 | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 57,141 | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 56,561 | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 55,548 | -1.8% |
| 2019 | 54,172 | -2.5% |
| 2020 | 52,442 | -3.2% |
| 2021 | 51,817 | -1.2% |
| 2022 | 51,439 | -0.7% |
| 2023 | 50,992 | -0.9% |
| 2024 | 50,495 | -1.0% |
| 2025 | 49,975 | -1.0% |
Kiribati compared with similar countries
- Kiribati's 49,975 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 5.28 million, 1% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Kiribati's 49,975 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 377,513, 13% of the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 41,758 | 39,980 | 42,727 | 10 |
| 1970s | 43,388 | 40,847 | 45,326 | 10 |
| 1980s | 44,182 | 41,315 | 47,772 | 10 |
| 1990s | 50,670 | 48,666 | 52,010 | 10 |
| 2000s | 54,141 | 50,219 | 56,524 | 10 |
| 2010s | 56,382 | 54,172 | 57,293 | 10 |
| 2020s | 51,193 | 49,975 | 52,442 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Kiribati
- 180 Antigua and Barbuda 71,285 compare
- 181 Seychelles 66,909 compare
- 182 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 51,979 compare
- 184 Aruba 41,612 compare
- 185 Isle of Man 40,262 compare
- 186 Luxembourg 35,144 compare
More agriculture & rural data for Kiribati
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 1 % change on previous year (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.2317 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 590.95 current US$ per person (2024)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -1.03 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3661 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 23.2% (2024)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 23.2% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.0% (2021)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.3% (2021)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Kiribati?
- Rural population in Kiribati was 49,975 in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Kiribati?
- The highest recorded value was 57,293 in 2015.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Kiribati?
- The lowest recorded value was 39,980 in 1960.
- How does Kiribati rank for rural population?
- Kiribati ranks 183rd out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Kiribati?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Kiribati 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.