South Africa Urban Population Share (2025)
South Africa's Urban Population Share: 63.8 % of total population in 2025, +0.1pp YoY. World Bank (SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS), 1976–2025.
South Africa (2025)
63.8
% of total population
+0.1pp YoY
YoY Change
+0.1pp
percentage points
Trend
up
Series length
50
years of data
Data
| Year | % of total population | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 63.8 | +0.1pp |
| 2024 | 63.7 | +0.1pp |
| 2023 | 63.6 | +0.1pp |
| 2022 | 63.5 | unchanged |
| 2021 | 63.5 | +0.1pp |
| 2020 | 63.4 | unchanged |
| 2019 | 63.4 | unchanged |
| 2018 | 63.4 | +0.1pp |
| 2017 | 63.3 | unchanged |
| 2016 | 63.3 | +0.1pp |
| 2015 | 63.2 | +0.1pp |
| 2014 | 63.1 | unchanged |
| 2013 | 63.1 | +0.1pp |
| 2012 | 63 | +0.1pp |
| 2011 | 62.9 | +0.3pp |
| 2010 | 62.6 | +0.3pp |
| 2009 | 62.3 | +0.5pp |
| 2008 | 61.8 | +0.6pp |
| 2007 | 61.2 | +0.7pp |
| 2006 | 60.5 | +0.7pp |
About this Dataset
South Africa recorded 63.8 % of total population in 2025. The latest change was +0.1pp. Across 1976–2025 the series ranges from 48.1 in 1976 to 63.8 in 2025.
This page tracks the urban population as a share of total population in South Africa from 1990 to present. Urbanisation is a structural driver of consumer spending, infrastructure investment, and financial services adoption.
Data sourced from World Bank via Open Data API. Values use World Bank standardised methodology intended for cross-country comparison.
Frequently Asked Questions
This page tracks the urban population as a share of total population in South Africa from 1990 to present. Urbanisation is a structural driver of consumer spending, infrastructure investment, and financial services adoption. It is published by World Bank and updated annually.
The most recent observation covers 2025. World Bank typically publishes this series with a lag of several months after the reference period. The series runs 1976–2025 (50 observations).
The series peaked at 63.8 % of total population in 2025 and reached its lowest recorded value of 48.1 in 1976. The latest reading of 63.8 in 2025 represents a change of +0.1pp.