Population Density by Country

Explore population density, total population and country area on an interactive 3D globe.

Data source: UN DESA — World Population Prospects 2022 & World Bank — 2023 estimates. All data is stored locally; no external request is made.

Map borders: Natural Earth via world-atlas TopoJSON (1:110 m scale). Borders reflect de facto administrative control and do not imply any position on the legal status of disputed territories.

Drag to rotate · Scroll to zoom · Double-click to reset · Hover a country for details

About population density

What is population density?

Population density is the number of people living per unit of area — usually expressed as inhabitants per square kilometre (hab./km²). It tells you how tightly a country's population is packed into its territory.

Why use a logarithmic scale?

Density ranges from less than 2 hab./km² (Mongolia, Namibia, Australia) to more than 8 000 hab./km² (Monaco, Singapore, Bangladesh). A linear colour scale would make most countries look identical. A logarithmic scale reveals differences across the entire range — from the emptiest steppe to the most crowded city-state.

Most and least densely populated countries

The most densely populated sovereign states are Monaco (~18 000 hab./km²), Singapore (~8 100 hab./km²), and Bahrain (~1 900 hab./km²). The least dense are Mongolia (~2 hab./km²), Namibia (~3 hab./km²), and Australia (~3 hab./km²).

Top 10 rankings

Most densely populated

#	Country	Density (hab./km²)
1	Monaco	18,149
2	Singapore	8,129
3	Bahrain	1,925
4	Malta	1,693
5	Bangladesh	1,176
6	Palestine	864
7	Barbados	656
8	Taiwan	651
9	Mauritius	637
10	San Marino	558

Least densely populated

#	Country	Density (hab./km²)
1	Mongolia	2.2
2	Namibia	3.2
3	Australia	3.4
4	Iceland	3.7
5	Suriname	3.8
6	Guyana	3.8
7	Libya	3.9
8	Canada	3.9
9	Mauritania	4.5
10	Botswana	4.5

Largest populations

#	Country	Population
1	India	1.43 B
2	China	1.43 B
3	United States	340 M
4	Indonesia	278 M
5	Pakistan	231 M
6	Nigeria	224 M
7	Brazil	215 M
8	Bangladesh	174 M
9	Russia	144 M
10	Mexico	129 M

Frequently asked questions

What country has the highest population density?

Monaco has the highest population density in the world, with roughly 18,000 inhabitants per square kilometre. Other extremely dense countries include Singapore and Bahrain.

What country has the lowest population density?

Mongolia is generally considered the least densely populated sovereign country, with about 2 inhabitants per km². Namibia and Australia are also among the least dense.

Which country has the largest population?

India currently has the largest population in the world, followed by China and the United States.

Which country is the largest by area?

Russia is the largest country in the world, covering more than 17 million km².

Why isn't China the most densely populated country?

Although China has more than a billion inhabitants, its territory is also extremely large. Population density depends on both population and area.

What is considered a high population density?

There is no official threshold, but densities above 300 inhabitants per km² are generally considered high. Large cities often exceed several thousand inhabitants per km².

Why do deserts have low population density?

Deserts, mountains and polar regions are difficult places to live because of limited water, harsh climates or poor agricultural conditions.

Why are population density maps useful?

They help visualize where people live, identify urbanized regions and compare countries independently of their total size.