Rural population growth in Norway
Norway: Rural population growth was -0.8% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Rural population growth in Norway, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2025, rural population growth in Norway stood at -0.8%.
That represents a change of down 31.6% on the previous year and up 66.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population growth in Norway peaked at 1.0% in 2011 and was at its lowest, -4.8%, in 1967.
Norway ranks 156th of 207 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | -3.3% | -4.8% | 0.1% | 9 |
| 1970s | -1.3% | -2.8% | -0.7% | 10 |
| 1980s | -0.1% | -0.5% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | -1.0% | -1.9% | -0.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | -0.6% | -1.4% | -0.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | -0.8% | -2.3% | 1.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.3% | -0.8% | 0.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Norway
More agriculture & rural data for Norway
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2025)
- Rural population 16.4% (2025)
- Rural population 921,833 (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 1.6% (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 8.72 billion current US$ (2025)
- Land under cereal production 279,979 hectares (2024)
- Cereal yield 4,220 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal production 1.18 million metric tons (2024)
- Fertilizer consumption 205.14 kilograms per hectare of arable land (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population growth in Norway?
- Rural population growth in Norway was -0.8% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population growth recorded in Norway?
- The highest recorded value was 1.0% in 2011.
- What is the lowest rural population growth recorded in Norway?
- The lowest recorded value was -4.8% in 1967.
- How does Norway rank for rural population growth?
- Norway ranks 156th out of 207 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population growth rising or falling in Norway?
- Over the last ten years it is up 66.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Norway data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual rural population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear rural population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. 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.