Urbanization rate in China 2023, by region

In 2023, the urbanization rate in different provinces of China varied between 89.5 percent in Shanghai municipality and 38.9 percent in Tibet. The national average urbanization rate reached around 66.2 percent in 2023.

Urbanization and economic development

During China’s rapid economic development, the share of people living in cities increased from only 19.4 percent in 1980 to nearly 64 percent in 2020. Urbanization rates are now coming closer to those in developed countries. However, the degree of urbanization still varies significantly between different regions in China. This correlates generally with the level of economic development across different regions in China. In eastern Chinese regions with high personal income levels and high per capita GDP, more inhabitants are living in cities than in the countryside.

Influence of geography

Another reason for different urbanization rates lies in the huge geographic differences of regions in China. Basically, those regions with a low population density often also display lower urbanization rates, because their inhabitants live more scattered across the land area. These differences will most probably remain despite further economic progress.