In 2021, 56.61% of the world's population will live in urban areas, a proportion expected to increase to 68% by 2050. Moreover, 2007 was when, for the first time, more people in the world lived in urban than in rural areas. In 1950, 30% of the world's population was living in urban areas.
As of 2021, 4.46 billion people live in urban areas, and 3.42 billion live in rural areas globally. The world's urban population has grown rapidly from 751 million in 1950 to 4.46 billion in 2021 and will grow to 6.68 billion by 2050, adding about 2.22 billion people to urban areas. 90% of the projected growth of the world's urban population between 2021 and 2050 will occur in Asia and Africa. The world's rural population has grown slowly since 1950 and is expected to reach its peak in 2021. The global rural population is expected to decline to 3.1 billion by 2050.
The most urbanized regions include Northern America (82.75%), Latin America and the Caribbean (81.5%), Europe (75%), and Oceania (68%). The level of urbanization in Asia is now approximating 52%. In contrast, Africa remains mostly rural, with 44% of its population living in urban areas.
The biggest change has been in Latin America and the Caribbean, with 81.4% living in urban areas, up from 41.3% in 1950. The lowest change has been in Oceania, from 62.5% in 1950 to 68.3% in 2021. In 1950, less than 20 percent of Africans and Asians lived in cities.
Africa has the fastest population growth rate of 3.56% in 2021, followed by Asia (1.98%). Europe has the slowest population growth rate of 0.32%.
Urbanization by regions
- Population
- Urbanization
