Congo - Kinshasa vs Zambia: Urban population

Urban population in 2025: 45.1% in Congo - Kinshasa and 45.9% in Zambia, by UN estimates. In 2025 the value was higher in Zambia, by 0.8 percentage points, or 1.02 times that in Congo - Kinshasa.

Watch it change on the map

% of people · UN

Congo - KinshasaZambiaUN projection (World Urbanization Prospects 2025)

What the numbers say

Zambia has been higher since 2006, when it overtook Congo - Kinshasa.
In 2025, Congo - Kinshasa ranked 168 and Zambia ranked 166 of 229 countries, counting from the highest.
The UN projection (World Urbanization Prospects 2025) puts Congo - Kinshasa at 53.5% and Zambia at 59.1% in 2050.

Every year

% of people · UN

Year	Congo - Kinshasa	Zambia
2025	45.1	45.9
2024	44.8	45.5
2023	44.4	45
2022	44	44.6
2021	43.6	44.2
2020	43.3	43.9
2019	42.9	43.5
2018	42.5	43.1
2017	42.1	42.7
2016	41.7	42.3
2015	41.3	42
2014	41	41.6
2013	40.6	41.2
2012	40.2	40.8
2011	39.8	40.4
2010	39.4	40
2009	39	39.5
2008	38.6	39
2007	38.2	38.4
2006	37.8	37.8
2005	37.4	37.3
2004	37	36.8
2003	36.5	36.4
2002	35.9	36.1
2001	35.4	35.9
2000	34.9	35.9
1999	34.4	36.2
1998	33.9	36.7
1997	33.4	37.4
1996	32.9	38
1995	32.5	38.4
1994	32	38.7
1993	31.6	38.9
1992	31.1	39.1
1991	30.7	39.3
1990	30.3	39.4
1989	29.9	39.5
1988	29.5	39.5
1987	29.1	39.6
1986	28.8	39.7
1985	28.4	39.7
1984	28.1	39.8
1983	27.8	39.8
1982	27.5	39.9
1981	27.2	39.9
1980	26.9	39.9
1979	26.5	39.7
1978	26.2	39.3
1977	25.9	38.6
1976	25.6	37.8
1975	25.4	36.8
1974	25.1	35.7
1973	24.8	34.4
1972	24.5	33.2
1971	24.3	31.9
1970	24	30.7
1969	23.8	29.4
1968	23.6	28
1967	23.4	26.4
1966	23.2	24.6
1965	23	22.9
1964	22.8	21.3
1963	22.7	20.1
1962	22.5	19.1
1961	22.4	18.2
1960	22.3	17.2
1959	22.2	16.3
1958	22.2	15.5
1957	22.1	14.7
1956	22.1	14
1955	22	13.3
1954	21.7	12.7
1953	21.3	12.3
1952	20.6	11.9
1951	19.8	11.6
1950	18.8	11.5

UN projection (World Urbanization Prospects 2025) · 2026–2050

Year	Congo - Kinshasa	Zambia
2026	45.5	46.4
2027	45.8	46.8
2028	46.2	47.3
2029	46.6	47.8
2030	46.9	48.2
2031	47.3	48.7
2032	47.6	49.2
2033	48	49.7
2034	48.3	50.2
2035	48.7	50.7
2036	49	51.2
2037	49.4	51.7
2038	49.7	52.3
2039	50	52.8
2040	50.4	53.3
2041	50.7	53.9
2042	51	54.4
2043	51.3	55
2044	51.6	55.5
2045	52	56.1
2046	52.3	56.7
2047	52.6	57.3
2048	52.9	57.9
2049	53.2	58.5
2050	53.5	59.1

Each country on its own

Good to know

The share of people living in places the country itself counts as urban.
Source: UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025.
The dashed line is the UN projection (World Urbanization Prospects 2025), a scenario rather than a forecast.
Ranks count the 229 countries with a value in 2025, highest first.

How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time

Congo - Kinshasa vs Zambia

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Conflict

Deaths in conflictsCongo - Kinshasa: 5,228 deaths in 2022Zambia: 0 deaths in 2022