Iraq vs Syria: Urban population

Urban population in 2025: 69.9% in Iraq and 72.1% in Syria, by UN estimates. In 2025 the value was higher in Syria, by 2.1 percentage points, or 1.03 times that in Iraq.

Watch it change on the map

% of people · UN

IraqSyriaUN projection (World Urbanization Prospects 2025)

What the numbers say

Syria has been higher since 2013, when it overtook Iraq.
In 2025, Iraq ranked 97 and Syria ranked 88 of 229 countries, counting from the highest.
The UN projection (World Urbanization Prospects 2025) puts Iraq at 82.5% and Syria at 80.9% in 2050.

Every year

% of people · UN

Year	Iraq	Syria
2025	69.9	72.1
2024	69.9	72.1
2023	69.9	72.2
2022	69.9	72.6
2021	69.9	73
2020	69.9	73.4
2019	69.9	73.8
2018	69.9	74.1
2017	69.9	74.5
2016	69.9	75.2
2015	69.9	75.8
2014	69.7	76
2013	69.4	73.1
2012	69.2	65.1
2011	69.1	58.5
2010	69.1	55.7
2009	69	55
2008	68.9	54.6
2007	68.7	54.3
2006	68.6	54.1
2005	68.4	53.8
2004	68.2	53.5
2003	68.1	53.1
2002	67.9	52.7
2001	67.8	52.3
2000	67.6	51.9
1999	67.5	51.5
1998	67.5	51.1
1997	67.5	50.7
1996	67.6	50.4
1995	67.9	50.1
1994	68.2	49.8
1993	68.6	49.5
1992	69	49.3
1991	69.4	49.1
1990	69.7	48.8
1989	70	48.7
1988	70.2	48.5
1987	70.2	48.3
1986	70	48.1
1985	69.7	47.9
1984	69.1	47.7
1983	68.5	47.5
1982	67.7	47.3
1981	66.9	47
1980	66	46.7
1979	65.1	46.4
1978	64.3	46.1
1977	63.5	45.8
1976	62.7	45.5
1975	61.8	45.2
1974	60.9	44.8
1973	60	44.5
1972	59	44.1
1971	58	43.8
1970	57	43.4
1969	55.9	43.1
1968	54.8	42.7
1967	53.7	42.4
1966	52.6	42
1965	51.4	41.7
1964	50.1	41.4
1963	48.6	41.1
1962	47	40.7
1961	45.5	40.4
1960	44	40
1959	42.6	39.6
1958	41.4	39.2
1957	40.4	38.8
1956	39.5	38.4
1955	38.6	38
1954	37.7	37.5
1953	37	37
1952	36.2	36.5
1951	35.6	35.9
1950	35	35.3

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

Year	Iraq	Syria
2026	70	72.1
2027	70.2	72.1
2028	70.3	72.2
2029	70.5	72.2
2030	70.7	72.3
2031	71	72.4
2032	71.3	72.5
2033	71.6	72.7
2034	72	72.9
2035	72.4	73.1
2036	72.8	73.3
2037	73.3	73.5
2038	73.8	73.8
2039	74.4	74.2
2040	74.9	74.6
2041	75.5	75
2042	76.2	75.4
2043	76.9	75.9
2044	77.6	76.5
2045	78.3	77.1
2046	79.1	77.7
2047	79.9	78.4
2048	80.7	79.2
2049	81.6	80
2050	82.5	80.9

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

Iraq vs Syria: Urban population

What the numbers say

Every year

Each country on its own

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