Rural population in Maldives
Maldives: Rural population was 304,531 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Rural population in Maldives, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
In 2025, rural population in Maldives stood at 304,531.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.5% on the previous year and up 15.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Maldives peaked at 308,886 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 80,825, in 1960.
That places Maldives 159th out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Maldives, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 80,825 | — |
| 1961 | 82,798 | +2.4% |
| 1962 | 84,856 | +2.5% |
| 1963 | 86,981 | +2.5% |
| 1964 | 89,129 | +2.5% |
| 1965 | 92,171 | +3.4% |
| 1966 | 96,146 | +4.3% |
| 1967 | 99,779 | +3.8% |
| 1968 | 102,824 | +3.1% |
| 1969 | 105,663 | +2.8% |
| 1970 | 108,543 | +2.7% |
| 1971 | 111,176 | +2.4% |
| 1972 | 113,324 | +1.9% |
| 1973 | 115,054 | +1.5% |
| 1974 | 116,495 | +1.3% |
| 1975 | 117,894 | +1.2% |
| 1976 | 119,450 | +1.3% |
| 1977 | 121,280 | +1.5% |
| 1978 | 123,214 | +1.6% |
| 1979 | 125,136 | +1.6% |
| 1980 | 127,216 | +1.7% |
| 1981 | 129,480 | +1.8% |
| 1982 | 131,909 | +1.9% |
| 1983 | 134,506 | +2.0% |
| 1984 | 137,573 | +2.3% |
| 1985 | 141,652 | +3.0% |
| 1986 | 146,465 | +3.4% |
| 1987 | 151,472 | +3.4% |
| 1988 | 156,470 | +3.3% |
| 1989 | 161,459 | +3.2% |
| 1990 | 166,656 | +3.2% |
| 1991 | 171,990 | +3.2% |
| 1992 | 177,197 | +3.0% |
| 1993 | 182,133 | +2.8% |
| 1994 | 186,723 | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 191,081 | +2.3% |
| 1996 | 194,920 | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 198,034 | +1.6% |
| 1998 | 200,522 | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 202,508 | +1.0% |
| 2000 | 204,171 | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 204,895 | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 204,457 | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 203,419 | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 202,386 | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 202,024 | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 204,418 | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 209,503 | +2.5% |
| 2008 | 215,372 | +2.8% |
| 2009 | 221,601 | +2.9% |
| 2010 | 228,148 | +3.0% |
| 2011 | 234,938 | +3.0% |
| 2012 | 241,854 | +2.9% |
| 2013 | 248,741 | +2.8% |
| 2014 | 255,641 | +2.8% |
| 2015 | 262,984 | +2.9% |
| 2016 | 270,613 | +2.9% |
| 2017 | 278,052 | +2.7% |
| 2018 | 285,315 | +2.6% |
| 2019 | 292,398 | +2.5% |
| 2020 | 299,270 | +2.4% |
| 2021 | 305,874 | +2.2% |
| 2022 | 308,886 | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 307,656 | -0.4% |
| 2024 | 306,133 | -0.5% |
| 2025 | 304,531 | -0.5% |
Maldives compared with similar countries
- Maldives's 304,531 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.53 million, 20% of the median. (59 countries reporting)
- Maldives's 304,531 is below the median for South Asia, which is 13.54 million, 2% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 92,117 | 80,825 | 105,663 | 10 |
| 1970s | 117,157 | 108,543 | 125,136 | 10 |
| 1980s | 141,820 | 127,216 | 161,459 | 10 |
| 1990s | 187,176 | 166,656 | 202,508 | 10 |
| 2000s | 207,225 | 202,024 | 221,601 | 10 |
| 2010s | 259,868 | 228,148 | 292,398 | 10 |
| 2020s | 305,392 | 299,270 | 308,886 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Maldives
More agriculture & rural data for Maldives
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 30.99 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0459 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 670.93 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.5233 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5749 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 4.6% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 4.6% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.0% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.3% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Maldives?
- Rural population in Maldives was 304,531 in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Maldives?
- The highest recorded value was 308,886 in 2022.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Maldives?
- The lowest recorded value was 80,825 in 1960.
- How does Maldives rank for rural population?
- Maldives ranks 159th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Maldives?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Maldives 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.