Population in the largest city in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Population in the largest city was 25.4% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Population in the largest city in Papua New Guinea, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of urban population.
Analysis
Papua New Guinea recorded 25.4% for population in the largest city in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 66 years on record.
The figure is down 1.4% on the previous year and down 14.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population in the largest city in Papua New Guinea peaked at 42.1% in 1960 and was at its lowest, 25.4%, in 2025.
That places Papua New Guinea 94th out of 153 countries with data for 2025, putting it 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 Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | % of urban population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 42.1% | — |
| 1961 | 39.7% | -5.7% |
| 1962 | 37.7% | -5.2% |
| 1963 | 35.8% | -4.9% |
| 1964 | 34.2% | -4.6% |
| 1965 | 32.7% | -4.3% |
| 1966 | 31.4% | -4.1% |
| 1967 | 30.6% | -2.4% |
| 1968 | 28.8% | -6.0% |
| 1969 | 27.2% | -5.6% |
| 1970 | 26.4% | -2.8% |
| 1971 | 26.8% | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 26.2% | -2.2% |
| 1973 | 25.8% | -1.8% |
| 1974 | 25.6% | -0.8% |
| 1975 | 25.7% | +0.5% |
| 1976 | 26.2% | +2.1% |
| 1977 | 27.1% | +3.2% |
| 1978 | 28.0% | +3.3% |
| 1979 | 28.9% | +3.4% |
| 1980 | 29.9% | +3.3% |
| 1981 | 30.6% | +2.4% |
| 1982 | 31.0% | +1.4% |
| 1983 | 31.3% | +0.7% |
| 1984 | 31.3% | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 31.4% | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 31.4% | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 31.5% | +0.3% |
| 1988 | 31.7% | +0.7% |
| 1989 | 32.1% | +1.2% |
| 1990 | 32.6% | +1.6% |
| 1991 | 32.6% | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 32.6% | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 32.7% | +0.5% |
| 1994 | 33.0% | +0.9% |
| 1995 | 33.4% | +1.2% |
| 1996 | 33.8% | +1.3% |
| 1997 | 34.2% | +1.2% |
| 1998 | 34.6% | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 34.7% | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 34.7% | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 34.3% | -1.1% |
| 2002 | 34.0% | -1.1% |
| 2003 | 33.6% | -1.0% |
| 2004 | 33.3% | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 32.9% | -1.0% |
| 2006 | 32.6% | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 32.3% | -1.0% |
| 2008 | 32.0% | -1.0% |
| 2009 | 31.7% | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 31.4% | -0.9% |
| 2011 | 31.1% | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 30.9% | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 30.6% | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 30.2% | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 29.8% | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 29.4% | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 29.0% | -1.5% |
| 2018 | 28.5% | -1.6% |
| 2019 | 28.0% | -1.7% |
| 2020 | 27.5% | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 27.0% | -1.7% |
| 2022 | 26.6% | -1.6% |
| 2023 | 26.2% | -1.5% |
| 2024 | 25.8% | -1.5% |
| 2025 | 25.4% | -1.4% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 25.4% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 31.8%, 80% of the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 25.4% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 25.4%, 1.0× the median. (19 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 34.0% | 27.2% | 42.1% | 10 |
| 1970s | 26.7% | 25.6% | 28.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 31.2% | 29.9% | 32.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 33.4% | 32.6% | 34.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 33.1% | 31.7% | 34.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 29.9% | 28.0% | 31.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.4% | 25.4% | 27.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
More urban development data for Papua New Guinea
- Population density 22.94 people per sq. km of land area (2023)
- PM2.5 air pollution, mean annual exposure 14.11 micrograms per cubic meter (2023)
- Population in largest city 431,903 (2025)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 23 - Ecological 22.19 Hectares (2020)
- PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO 100.0% (2017)
- Dollar value of all resources made available to strengthen 229,690 (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population in the largest city in Papua New Guinea?
- Population in the largest city in Papua New Guinea was 25.4% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest population in the largest city recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 42.1% in 1960.
- What is the lowest population in the largest city recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.4% in 2025.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for population in the largest city?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 94th out of 153 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population in the largest city rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 14.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea 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.