What percentage of people live in cities?

By national definitions about 58% of people lived in urban areas in 2025, up from 30% in 1950. The UN's new harmonised method (2025) splits the world differently: 45% in cities, 36% in towns, 19% rural. There are 33 cities with over 10 million people; Jakarta, Dhaka and Tokyo are the largest under the new definition.

Source: UN World Urbanization Prospects (2025)