How urban is India?
Share of India's population living in urban areas.
Source: World Bank Indicators API · indicator SP.URB.TOTL.IN.ZS Fetched 3/6/2026
At a glance
35.4%
latest value, 2024
17.9%
first value, 1960
65
annual observations in this artifact
annual
source frequency
The explanation Draft prose wraps locked source numbers; no numbers are generated at request time
India is still less urban than many large economies, but even a one-point shift means millions of people moving into urban systems.
This chart shows what share of people live in places counted as urban.
This is the urban share of total population. It depends on official urban definitions, so comparisons should account for classification differences.
India's urban change often looks slow as a percentage. On the ground, it can mean new towns, crowded edges of cities, longer commutes, and farmland turning into plots.
Keep pulling the thread
How many Indians are in the labour force? -> How many Indian women are in the labour force? -> What share of Indians work in agriculture? ->Methodology
MeasureUrban population
GeographyIndia
Unit% of population
TransformValues displayed as percent of population.
CaveatUrban definitions vary and may understate settlement change around cities.