Urban population in Democratic Republic of Congo

Democratic Republic of Congo: Urban population was 45.1% in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
45.1%
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
160th
of 215 countries
All-time high
45.1%
in 2025
All-time low
22.3%
in 1960
Years of data
66
1960–2025

Urban population in Democratic Republic of Congo, 1960–2025

01020304050196019922025

Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.

Analysis

Democratic Republic of Congo recorded 45.1% for urban population in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.

The figure is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 9.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, urban population in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 45.1% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 22.3%, in 1960.

Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 160th of 215 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 23.0% 22.3% 23.8% 10
1970s 25.2% 24.0% 26.5% 10
1980s 28.3% 26.8% 29.9% 10
1990s 32.3% 30.3% 34.4% 10
2000s 37.1% 34.9% 39.0% 10
2010s 41.1% 39.4% 42.9% 10
2020s 44.2% 43.3% 45.1% 6

Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo

  1. 157 Sierra Leone 45.9% compare
  2. 158 Zambia 45.9% compare
  3. 159 Seychelles 45.5% compare
  4. 161 Lesotho 44.7% compare
  5. 162 Central African Republic 44.6% compare
  6. 163 Togo 44.4% compare

See the full ranking of 264 places →

More climate change data for Democratic Republic of Congo

All data for Democratic Republic of Congo →

Frequently asked questions

What is urban population in Democratic Republic of Congo?
Urban population in Democratic Republic of Congo was 45.1% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
What is the highest urban population recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
The highest recorded value was 45.1% in 2025.
What is the lowest urban population recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
The lowest recorded value was 22.3% in 1960.
How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for urban population?
Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 160th out of 215 countries with data for 2025.
Is urban population rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
Over the last ten years it is up 9.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban population (% of total population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

About this data

Indicator
Urban population (% of total population)
Unit
% of total population
Source
World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
264 places, 17,424 data points, 1960–2025
Last refreshed

Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. The data are collected and smoothed by United Nations Population Division.