![population density map of major us cities population density map of major us cities](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/bc/e9/e6/bce9e64407d33a9ebf081a3e18334480.jpg)
However, they're not without their critics: some researchers suggest that far more people live in urban areas than these figures suggest. The UN figures are the most widely referenced and cited on global urbanization. However, since then, the share of individuals residing in urban areas has escalated, exceeding 50% of the total population. By the year 2007, the distribution between urban and rural residents had equalized, representing a balanced share of the population.
![population density map of major us cities population density map of major us cities](https://vividmaps.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/US-population-density-1024x634.png)
As of 1960, the rural segment constituted more than 60% of the population. 4 This is based on nationally-collated census figures, combined with UN estimates where census data is unavailable. In the chart here we see the share of the world's population living in urban and rural areas, extending from 1960. Figures reported by the United Nations (UN) deliver a straightforward answer. UN estimates: More than half of the world’s population live in urban areasĪt first glance, this seems like a simple question to answer. Let's, therefore, look at the conflicting estimates of how urban our world is, and where these differences come from. If our aim is to develop resource-efficient, inclusive cities, understanding how many people they must provide for is essential for urban planning. The UN's 11th Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) is to " make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable". Understanding the distribution of people in a given country is essential to make sure the appropriate resources and services are available where they're needed. The allocation and distribution of resources - ranging from housing and transport access to healthcare, education, and employment opportunities - should all be dependent on where people live. Whilst disagreement on the numbers can seem irrelevant, understanding cities, urbanization rates, the distribution, and the density of people matters. disagreements in urban population numbers arise from definition or boundary differences in what makes a population 'urban'.urbanization is expected to continue to increase with rising incomes and shifts away from employment in agriculture 2.rates of urbanization have been increasing rapidly across all regions (in 1800, less than 10% of people across all regions lived in urban areas).Although it can seem like our expanding cities take up a lot of land, only a bit more than 1% of global land is defined as built-up area 1.The broad distribution and density of where people live across the world (sometimes at very high resolution).Globally more people live in urbanized settings than not (disputes in these figures are all above the 50% urban mark).How urban is the world? What we know about urban populations and why it mattersīefore looking in more detail at the differences in estimates of urban populations, we should first clarify what we do know: You can explore the data on urban and rural populations for any country or region using the "Change country or region" toggle on the interactive chart. The UN estimates this milestone event – when the number of people in urban areas overtook the number in rural settings – occurred in 2007. This means over half of the world lives in urban settings. More than 4 billion people now live in urban areas. In the visualization, we see estimates of the number of people globally who live in urban and rural areas. How many people live in urban areas today?
![population density map of major us cities population density map of major us cities](https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RVXQMDThzXE/VTjnNA6BcII/AAAAAAAALdo/L74wTHOSxUs/s320/500px-Map_of_states_showing_population_density_in_2013.svg-763361.png)
There has been a mass migration of populations from rural to urban areas. Over the past few centuries – and particularly in recent decades – this has shifted dramatically. See all charts on urbanization ↓ Urbanization across the world today Number of people living in urban areas More than 4 billion people – more than half of the world – live in urban areasįor most of human history, most people across the world lived in small communities. This topic page presents an overview of urbanization across the world, extending from the distant past to the present, and projections of future trends.
![population density map of major us cities population density map of major us cities](https://www.statisticshowto.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/World_population_density_map.png)
This transition has transformed the way we live, work, travel, and build networks. However, urban settings are a relatively new phenomenon in human history. More than half of the world's population now live in urban areas - increasingly in highly dense cities.