Which countries are most crowded?
Click any country to see its population density — how many people share each square kilometre of land.
Overview
Population density shows how tightly a country's people are packed onto its land. City-states top 20,000 people per square kilometre; the emptiest countries have less than one. This map compares them all.
Key facts
- Micro-states and city-states are the most densely populated.
- Large, cold or arid countries can average under 5 people per km².
- Density says nothing about how crowded daily life feels — most people cluster in cities.
Common questions
What is population density?
The average number of people per square kilometre of a country's land area. It is the population divided by land area.
Why can a big country have low density?
Much of a large country may be desert, mountain or ice where few people live, pulling the national average down even if cities are crowded.
Where does the data come from?
The UN and World Bank, compiled via Our World in Data.
Sources & methodology
Data from UN / World Bank (via Our World in Data), compiled via Our World in Data. Global figures are population-weighted across the countries that report this measure; countries without reliable recent data are shown as “no data”.
Last updated: 3 August 2026.
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