Urban population growth in Cameroon
Cameroon: Urban population growth was 3.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Urban population growth in Cameroon, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for urban population growth in Cameroon is 3.0%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 65 years on record.
The figure is down 2.2% on the previous year and down 19.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Cameroon peaked at 9.2% in 1973 and was at its lowest, 3.0%, in 2025.
Cameroon ranks 44th of 215 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 6.1% | 3.9% | 7.1% | 9 |
| 1970s | 7.5% | 6.0% | 9.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.2% | 4.5% | 6.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.3% | 3.9% | 4.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.7% | 3.6% | 4.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.6% | 3.4% | 3.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.2% | 3.0% | 3.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Cameroon
More climate change data for Cameroon
- Population growth 2.6% (2025)
- Population, total 29.88 million (2025)
- Urban population 16.63 million (2025)
- Urban population 55.7% (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 30.8% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 1.09 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 0.4% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 11.0% (2025)
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas 11.0% (2025)
- Marine protected areas 11.4% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Cameroon?
- Urban population growth in Cameroon was 3.0% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 9.2% in 1973.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.0% in 2025.
- How does Cameroon rank for urban population growth?
- Cameroon ranks 44th out of 215 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is down 19.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Cameroon data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban 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 urban population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear urban population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated using World Bank total population estimates and urban ratios from the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects.