Population in the largest city in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan: Population in the largest city was 23.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Population in the largest city in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of urban population.
Analysis
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan recorded 23.6% for population in the largest city in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 66 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 0.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population in the largest city in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan peaked at 31.8% in 1975 and was at its lowest, 23.6%, in 2025.
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 13th of 43 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Population in the largest city in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, year by year
| Year | % of urban population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 30.1% | — |
| 1961 | 30.3% | +0.7% |
| 1962 | 30.5% | +0.5% |
| 1963 | 30.7% | +0.6% |
| 1964 | 30.9% | +0.8% |
| 1965 | 31.3% | +1.0% |
| 1966 | 31.5% | +0.9% |
| 1967 | 31.5% | -0.1% |
| 1968 | 31.5% | +0.1% |
| 1969 | 31.5% | +0.1% |
| 1970 | 31.6% | +0.1% |
| 1971 | 31.6% | +0.2% |
| 1972 | 31.7% | +0.3% |
| 1973 | 31.8% | +0.2% |
| 1974 | 31.8% | +0.1% |
| 1975 | 31.8% | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 31.7% | -0.3% |
| 1977 | 31.5% | -0.8% |
| 1978 | 31.2% | -1.0% |
| 1979 | 30.8% | -1.1% |
| 1980 | 30.4% | -1.3% |
| 1981 | 30.0% | -1.5% |
| 1982 | 29.5% | -1.6% |
| 1983 | 29.1% | -1.5% |
| 1984 | 28.6% | -1.4% |
| 1985 | 28.3% | -1.3% |
| 1986 | 27.9% | -1.2% |
| 1987 | 27.6% | -1.1% |
| 1988 | 27.4% | -0.8% |
| 1989 | 27.2% | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 27.1% | -0.5% |
| 1991 | 26.9% | -0.5% |
| 1992 | 26.8% | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 26.7% | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 26.7% | -0.2% |
| 1995 | 26.6% | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 26.6% | -0.1% |
| 1997 | 26.5% | -0.5% |
| 1998 | 26.3% | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 26.2% | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 26.0% | -0.6% |
| 2001 | 25.9% | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 25.8% | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 25.7% | -0.4% |
| 2004 | 25.4% | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 25.2% | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 25.0% | -0.8% |
| 2007 | 24.8% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 24.7% | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 24.6% | -0.4% |
| 2010 | 24.6% | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 24.2% | -1.5% |
| 2012 | 24.0% | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 23.8% | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 23.7% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 23.7% | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 23.8% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 23.9% | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 24.1% | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 24.1% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 24.0% | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 24.1% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 23.9% | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 23.8% | -0.5% |
| 2024 | 23.7% | -0.4% |
| 2025 | 23.6% | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 31.0% | 30.1% | 31.5% | 10 |
| 1970s | 31.6% | 30.8% | 31.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 28.6% | 27.2% | 30.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 26.6% | 26.2% | 27.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 25.3% | 24.6% | 26.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 24.0% | 23.7% | 24.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.9% | 23.6% | 24.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan
More urban development data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan
- Population density 63.12 people per sq. km of land area (2023)
- PM2.5 air pollution, mean annual exposure 45.36 micrograms per cubic meter (2023)
- PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO 100.0% (2017)
All data for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan →
Frequently asked questions
- What is population in the largest city in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
- Population in the largest city in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan was 23.6% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest population in the largest city recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
- The highest recorded value was 31.8% in 1975.
- What is the lowest population in the largest city recorded in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.6% in 2025.
- How does Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan rank for population in the largest city?
- Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan ranks 13th out of 43 groups with data for 2025.
- Is population in the largest city rising or falling in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan 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.