Rural population in Middle income
Middle income: Rural population was 2.69 billion in 2025. ▲ Rising
Rural population in Middle income, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
In 2025, rural population in Middle income stood at 2.69 billion.
That represents a change of down 0.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Middle income peaked at 2.73 billion in 2010 and was at its lowest, 1.52 billion, in 1960.
That places Middle income 4th out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Middle income, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 1.52 billion | — |
| 1961 | 1.54 billion | +1.2% |
| 1962 | 1.58 billion | +2.5% |
| 1963 | 1.61 billion | +2.4% |
| 1964 | 1.64 billion | +1.5% |
| 1965 | 1.67 billion | +2.2% |
| 1966 | 1.71 billion | +2.2% |
| 1967 | 1.75 billion | +2.1% |
| 1968 | 1.79 billion | +2.2% |
| 1969 | 1.82 billion | +2.2% |
| 1970 | 1.87 billion | +2.2% |
| 1971 | 1.90 billion | +2.1% |
| 1972 | 1.94 billion | +2.0% |
| 1973 | 1.98 billion | +1.9% |
| 1974 | 2.02 billion | +1.9% |
| 1975 | 2.05 billion | +1.6% |
| 1976 | 2.08 billion | +1.5% |
| 1977 | 2.11 billion | +1.5% |
| 1978 | 2.14 billion | +1.3% |
| 1979 | 2.16 billion | +1.0% |
| 1980 | 2.19 billion | +1.4% |
| 1981 | 2.22 billion | +1.3% |
| 1982 | 2.25 billion | +1.5% |
| 1983 | 2.28 billion | +1.2% |
| 1984 | 2.30 billion | +1.0% |
| 1985 | 2.33 billion | +1.3% |
| 1986 | 2.36 billion | +1.3% |
| 1987 | 2.39 billion | +1.3% |
| 1988 | 2.43 billion | +1.4% |
| 1989 | 2.46 billion | +1.4% |
| 1990 | 2.50 billion | +1.6% |
| 1991 | 2.53 billion | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 2.56 billion | +1.1% |
| 1993 | 2.59 billion | +1.1% |
| 1994 | 2.61 billion | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 2.64 billion | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 2.65 billion | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 2.67 billion | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 2.68 billion | +0.4% |
| 1999 | 2.69 billion | +0.4% |
| 2000 | 2.69 billion | +0.2% |
| 2001 | 2.70 billion | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 2.71 billion | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 2.71 billion | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 2.72 billion | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 2.72 billion | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 2.72 billion | +0.1% |
| 2007 | 2.72 billion | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 2.73 billion | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 2.73 billion | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 2.73 billion | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 2.72 billion | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 2.72 billion | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 2.72 billion | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 2.71 billion | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 2.71 billion | -0.3% |
| 2016 | 2.70 billion | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 2.70 billion | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 2.69 billion | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 2.69 billion | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 2.69 billion | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 2.68 billion | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 2.68 billion | -0.0% |
| 2023 | 2.68 billion | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 2.69 billion | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 2.69 billion | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.66 billion | 1.52 billion | 1.82 billion | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.02 billion | 1.87 billion | 2.16 billion | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.32 billion | 2.19 billion | 2.46 billion | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.61 billion | 2.50 billion | 2.69 billion | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.71 billion | 2.69 billion | 2.73 billion | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.71 billion | 2.69 billion | 2.73 billion | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.68 billion | 2.68 billion | 2.69 billion | 6 |
Countries ranked near Middle income
More agriculture & rural data for Middle income
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0881 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population 44.6% (2025)
- Rural population growth 0.0% (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 3.43 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 8.8% (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 3.60 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.8% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.2% (2024)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4459 units per person (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Middle income?
- Rural population in Middle income was 2.69 billion in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Middle income?
- The highest recorded value was 2.73 billion in 2010.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Middle income?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.52 billion in 1960.
- How does Middle income rank for rural population?
- Middle income ranks 4th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Middle income?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Middle 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.