Urban population share in South Africa
63.8% of people in South Africa lived in urban areas in 2025. The value for 2025 is the highest in the series, which starts in 1960.
South Africa, 2025
63.8%
Change from 2024
+0.1percentage points
World, 2025
57.8%
Median of G20 countries, 2025
81.2%
Position in 2025
111th of 217
Urban population share in South Africa over time
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South Africa
World
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The chart loads when you scroll to it. The table below shows the same data.
The chart shows a calculation from the published values. The table below keeps the published values.
% of total population. Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators. Gaps mean no published value; points are not joined across missing years.
| Period | South Africa | World |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 63.8% | 57.8% |
| 2024 | 63.7% | 57.6% |
| 2023 | 63.6% | 57.3% |
| 2022 | 63.5% | 57.1% |
| 2021 | 63.5% | 56.8% |
| 2020 | 63.4% | 56.4% |
| 2019 | 63.4% | 56.1% |
| 2018 | 63.4% | 55.8% |
| 2017 | 63.3% | 55.3% |
| 2016 | 63.3% | 54.9% |
| 2015 | 63.2% | 54.4% |
| 2014 | 63.1% | 53.9% |
| 2013 | 63.1% | 53.4% |
| 2012 | 63.0% | 52.9% |
| 2011 | 62.9% | 52.5% |
| 2010 | 62.6% | 51.8% |
| 2009 | 62.3% | 51.4% |
| 2008 | 61.8% | 50.9% |
| 2007 | 61.2% | 50.4% |
| 2006 | 60.5% | 49.9% |
| 2005 | 59.8% | 49.4% |
| 2004 | 59.1% | 48.9% |
| 2003 | 58.4% | 48.4% |
| 2002 | 57.7% | 47.8% |
| 2001 | 57.0% | 47.3% |
A dash means no value was published for that period.
In short
- That is a change of +0.1 percentage points from 63.7% in 2024.
- Since 2015, when it was 63.2%, the figure has changed by +0.6 percentage points.
- Among the 217 countries with data for 2025, South Africa has the 111th highest value.
- The figure for the world in 2025 was 57.8%.
More for South Africa
All statistics for South Africa
Population estimates and projections
63,212,384 people
2023 · UN Population Division
Median age estimates and projections
28.2 years
2023 · UN Population Division
Fertility rate estimates and projections
2.22 births per woman
2023 · UN Population Division
Population growth estimates and projections
1.32%
2023 · UN Population Division
Population
64,747,319 people
2025 · World Bank
Population growth
1.15%
2025 · World Bank