Population in the largest city in Kuwait
Kuwait: Population in the largest city was 70.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
70.0%
Change on year
up 2.2%
World rank
9th
of 153 countries
All-time high
100.0%
in 1991
All-time low
60.2%
in 1984
Years of data
66
1960–2025
Population in the largest city in Kuwait, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of urban population.
Analysis
Kuwait recorded 70.0% for population in the largest city in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.2% on the previous year and up 4.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population in the largest city in Kuwait peaked at 100.0% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 60.2%, in 1984.
That places Kuwait 9th out of 153 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Population in the largest city in Kuwait, year by year
| Year | % of urban population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 76.2% | — |
| 1961 | 75.1% | -1.4% |
| 1962 | 74.1% | -1.3% |
| 1963 | 73.4% | -1.0% |
| 1964 | 73.1% | -0.4% |
| 1965 | 73.5% | +0.6% |
| 1966 | 75.4% | +2.6% |
| 1967 | 77.6% | +2.9% |
| 1968 | 80.0% | +3.1% |
| 1969 | 82.7% | +3.5% |
| 1970 | 84.8% | +2.6% |
| 1971 | 81.7% | -3.7% |
| 1972 | 78.4% | -4.0% |
| 1973 | 75.1% | -4.2% |
| 1974 | 72.1% | -4.0% |
| 1975 | 69.7% | -3.4% |
| 1976 | 67.8% | -2.6% |
| 1977 | 66.1% | -2.6% |
| 1978 | 64.6% | -2.3% |
| 1979 | 63.4% | -1.9% |
| 1980 | 62.5% | -1.4% |
| 1981 | 61.6% | -1.4% |
| 1982 | 60.9% | -1.1% |
| 1983 | 60.3% | -0.9% |
| 1984 | 60.2% | -0.2% |
| 1985 | 60.5% | +0.4% |
| 1986 | 60.6% | +0.2% |
| 1987 | 60.8% | +0.3% |
| 1988 | 61.1% | +0.4% |
| 1989 | 61.4% | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 84.3% | +37.4% |
| 1991 | 100.0% | +18.6% |
| 1992 | 81.0% | -19.0% |
| 1993 | 74.3% | -8.3% |
| 1994 | 70.0% | -5.8% |
| 1995 | 66.4% | -5.1% |
| 1996 | 66.8% | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 66.7% | -0.0% |
| 1998 | 66.8% | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 66.9% | +0.2% |
| 2000 | 67.2% | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 67.5% | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 67.9% | +0.6% |
| 2003 | 68.5% | +0.8% |
| 2004 | 69.2% | +1.0% |
| 2005 | 69.2% | +0.1% |
| 2006 | 68.9% | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 68.3% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 68.0% | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 67.8% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 67.7% | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 66.9% | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 66.1% | -1.2% |
| 2013 | 66.2% | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 66.6% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 67.0% | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 67.5% | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 68.4% | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 69.1% | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 68.7% | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 70.8% | +3.0% |
| 2021 | 72.9% | +2.9% |
| 2022 | 70.6% | -3.2% |
| 2023 | 67.9% | -3.7% |
| 2024 | 68.5% | +0.8% |
| 2025 | 70.0% | +2.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 76.1% | 73.1% | 82.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 72.4% | 63.4% | 84.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 61.0% | 60.2% | 62.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 74.3% | 66.4% | 100.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 68.2% | 67.2% | 69.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 67.4% | 66.1% | 69.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 70.1% | 67.9% | 72.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Kuwait
More urban development data for Kuwait
- Population density 272.36 people per sq. km of land area (2023)
- PM2.5 air pollution, mean annual exposure 62.35 micrograms per cubic meter (2023)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per capita 0.6999 units per person (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 3.40 million (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, annual 1.53 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per unit 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per square 185.06 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Population in largest city 3.40 million (2025)
- Crude steelmaking capacity 1.35 Tonnes (2025)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 23 - Ecological 33.99 Hectares (2020)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population in the largest city in Kuwait?
- Population in the largest city in Kuwait was 70.0% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest population in the largest city recorded in Kuwait?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1991.
- What is the lowest population in the largest city recorded in Kuwait?
- The lowest recorded value was 60.2% in 1984.
- How does Kuwait rank for population in the largest city?
- Kuwait ranks 9th out of 153 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population in the largest city rising or falling in Kuwait?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kuwait data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN), published as part of Population in the largest city (% of urban 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
Population in largest city is the percentage of a country's urban population living in that country's largest metropolitan area.