How does South Africa rank for population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre?

South Africa ranks 120th out of 190 countries with data for 2023.

Is population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre rising or falling in South Africa?

Over the last ten years it is up 21.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.

Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa

Name: Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa
Creator: Statizoid (derived)
License: Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page

South Africa: Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre was 0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)

0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre

Change on year

up 1.7%

World rank

120th

of 190 countries

All-time high

0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre

in 2023

All-time low

0.0069 1000 No per square kilometre

in 1961

Years of data

1961–2023

Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa, 1961–2023

Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in 1000 No per square kilometre.

Analysis

In 2023, population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa stood at 0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.7% on the previous year and up 21.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa peaked at 0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.0069 1000 No per square kilometre, in 1961.

That places South Africa 120th out of 190 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.

Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa, year by year

Annual values for Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa, 1961 to 2023.
Year	1000 No per square kilometre	Change
1961	0.0069 1000 No per square kilometre	—
1962	0.0071 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.9%
1963	0.0073 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1964	0.0075 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1965	0.0078 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1966	0.008 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1967	0.0082 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1968	0.0085 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1969	0.0087 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1970	0.009 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1971	0.0093 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.9%
1972	0.0095 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1973	0.0098 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1974	0.0101 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.9%
1975	0.0104 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.8%
1976	0.0107 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.8%
1977	0.011 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.7%
1978	0.0113 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.7%
1979	0.0116 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.7%
1980	0.0119 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.7%
1981	0.0122 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.9%
1982	0.0126 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1983	0.013 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.9%
1984	0.0133 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.9%
1985	0.0137 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1986	0.0142 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.4%
1987	0.0146 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.2%
1988	0.0151 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.2%
1989	0.0156 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.2%
1990	0.0161 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.3%
1991	0.0167 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.4%
1992	0.0172 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.3%
1993	0.0178 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.3%
1994	0.0183 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.2%
1995	0.0189 1000 No per square kilometre	+3.0%
1996	0.0194 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.8%
1997	0.02 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.7%
1998	0.0205 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.5%
1999	0.021 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.4%
2000	0.0214 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.3%
2001	0.0219 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.3%
2002	0.0224 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.3%
2003	0.023 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.3%
2004	0.0235 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.2%
2005	0.024 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.1%
2006	0.0244 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.0%
2007	0.0249 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.0%
2008	0.0254 1000 No per square kilometre	+1.9%
2009	0.0259 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.0%
2010	0.0265 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.1%
2011	0.027 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.2%
2012	0.0276 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.3%
2013	0.0283 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.3%
2014	0.0289 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.3%
2015	0.0295 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.2%
2016	0.0302 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.1%
2017	0.0308 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.0%
2018	0.0314 1000 No per square kilometre	+2.0%
2019	0.032 1000 No per square kilometre	+1.9%
2020	0.0326 1000 No per square kilometre	+1.9%
2021	0.0332 1000 No per square kilometre	+1.8%
2022	0.0338 1000 No per square kilometre	+1.8%
2023	0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre	+1.7%

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	0.0078 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0069 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0087 1000 No per square kilometre	9
1970s	0.0103 1000 No per square kilometre	0.009 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0116 1000 No per square kilometre	10
1980s	0.0136 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0119 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0156 1000 No per square kilometre	10
1990s	0.0186 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0161 1000 No per square kilometre	0.021 1000 No per square kilometre	10
2000s	0.0237 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0214 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0259 1000 No per square kilometre	10
2010s	0.0292 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0265 1000 No per square kilometre	0.032 1000 No per square kilometre	10
2020s	0.0335 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0326 1000 No per square kilometre	0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre	4

Countries ranked near South Africa

117 Cameroon 0.0351 1000 No per square kilometre compare
118 Bahamas 0.0349 1000 No per square kilometre compare
119 Guinea-Bissau 0.0347 1000 No per square kilometre compare
121 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.0341 1000 No per square kilometre compare
122 Georgia 0.0337 1000 No per square kilometre compare
123 Nicaragua 0.0329 1000 No per square kilometre compare

See the full ranking of 192 places →

More work & labour data for South Africa

Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.2264 % change on previous year (2100)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.242 % change on previous year (2100)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.2122 % change on previous year (2100)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.23 % change on previous year (2050)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.8748 % change on previous year (2050)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 58,057 1000 No (2050)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 14,698 1000 No (2050)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 49,126 1000 No (2100)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 45,189 1000 No (2100)
Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 94,314 1000 No (2100)

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa?: Population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa was 0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre in 2023, according to Statizoid (derived).
What is the highest population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre recorded in South Africa?: The highest recorded value was 0.0344 1000 No per square kilometre in 2023.
What is the lowest population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre recorded in South Africa?: The lowest recorded value was 0.0069 1000 No per square kilometre in 1961.
How does South Africa rank for population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre?: South Africa ranks 120th out of 190 countries with data for 2023.
Is population - est. & proj. — urban population, per square kilometre rising or falling in South Africa?: Over the last ten years it is up 21.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South Africa data come from?: The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page.

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Statizoid (derived). Retrieved 02 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/population-est-and-proj-urban-population-per-square-kilometre/south-africa/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page; please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/population-est-and-proj-urban-population-per-square-kilometre/south-africa/">Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre in South Africa</a> — Statizoid

How this figure is calculated

Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population divided by Land area (sq. km), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.

Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population ÷ Land area (sq. km)

Computed from

Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Land area FAOSTAT, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.

About this data

Indicator: Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, per square kilometre
Unit: 1000 No per square kilometre
Source: Statizoid (derived)
Licence: Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page
Coverage: 192 places, 11,029 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed: 17 August 2026

Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population divided by Land area (sq. km), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.