Rural population — all countries

Rural population — Melanesia

Rural population in Melanesia in 2025 — 10,372,408 people. Since 1960, the indicator has risen by 319.4%.

2025 10.37M people +1.26% vs 2024
World rank
Period maximum 10.37M people2025
Period minimum 2.47M people1960

Trend over time

1960–2025 · people

Rural population — Melanesia, 1960–202505M10M15M19601967197419811988199520022009201620231960: 2,472,865 people1962: 2,568,135 people1964: 2,658,066 people1966: 2,749,441 people1968: 2,822,072 people1970: 2,886,543 people1972: 2,980,914 people1974: 3,085,693 people1976: 3,207,801 people1978: 3,350,223 people1980: 3,496,478 people1982: 3,640,627 people1984: 3,781,490 people1986: 3,923,375 people1988: 4,062,574 people1990: 4,229,842 people1992: 4,484,694 people1994: 4,789,948 people1996: 5,123,463 people1998: 5,482,189 people2000: 5,844,301 people2002: 6,206,585 people2004: 6,581,552 people2006: 6,966,022 people2008: 7,359,668 people2010: 7,769,755 people2012: 8,187,671 people2014: 8,590,335 people2016: 8,974,319 people2018: 9,339,773 people2020: 9,677,195 people2022: 9,972,860 people2024: 10,243,686 people2025: 10,372,408 people
Change over the period: +7.9M (+319.45%) Average annual rate: 2.23 %

Comparison, 2025

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: Melanesia

Melanesia 10.37M people
World 3.46B people
Rural population — Melanesia, by year Melanesia All countries CSV XLSX
Year people Change Change, %
2025 10.37M +128,722 +1.26%
2024 10.24M +133,521 +1.32%
2023 10.11M +137,305 +1.38%
2022 9.97M +143,125 +1.46%
2021 9.83M +152,540 +1.58%
2020 9.68M +164,402 +1.73%
2019 9.51M +173,020 +1.85%
2018 9.34M +181,018 +1.98%
2017 9.16M +184,436 +2.06%
2016 8.97M +189,363 +2.16%
2015 8.78M +194,621 +2.27%
2014 8.59M +199,494 +2.38%
2013 8.39M +203,170 +2.48%
2012 8.19M +206,533 +2.59%
2011 7.98M +211,383 +2.72%
2010 7.77M +208,593 +2.76%
2009 7.56M +201,494 +2.74%
2008 7.36M +198,009 +2.76%
2007 7.16M +195,637 +2.81%
2006 6.97M +193,321 +2.85%
2005 6.77M +191,149 +2.9%
2004 6.58M +188,938 +2.96%
2003 6.39M +186,029 +3%
2002 6.21M +182,723 +3.03%
2001 6.02M +179,561 +3.07%
2000 5.84M +180,368 +3.18%
1999 5.66M +181,744 +3.32%
1998 5.48M +181,035 +3.42%
1997 5.3M +177,691 +3.47%
1996 5.12M +170,345 +3.44%
1995 4.95M +163,170 +3.41%
1994 4.79M +156,380 +3.37%
1993 4.63M +148,874 +3.32%
1992 4.48M +137,551 +3.16%
1991 4.35M +117,301 +2.77%
1990 4.23M +92,100 +2.23%
1989 4.14M +75,168 +1.85%
1988 4.06M +69,483 +1.74%
1987 3.99M +69,716 +1.78%
1986 3.92M +70,998 +1.84%
1985 3.85M +70,887 +1.87%
1984 3.78M +70,481 +1.9%
1983 3.71M +70,382 +1.93%
1982 3.64M +71,155 +1.99%
1981 3.57M +72,994 +2.09%
1980 3.5M +73,222 +2.14%
1979 3.42M +73,033 +2.18%
1978 3.35M +72,352 +2.21%
1977 3.28M +70,070 +2.18%
1976 3.21M +64,377 +2.05%
1975 3.14M +57,731 +1.87%
1974 3.09M +53,420 +1.76%
1973 3.03M +51,359 +1.72%
1972 2.98M +50,694 +1.73%
1971 2.93M +43,677 +1.51%
1970 2.89M +34,173 +1.2%
1969 2.85M +30,298 +1.07%
1968 2.82M +31,800 +1.14%
1967 2.79M +40,831 +1.49%
1966 2.75M +46,685 +1.73%
1965 2.7M +44,690 +1.68%
1964 2.66M +44,518 +1.7%
1963 2.61M +45,413 +1.77%
1962 2.57M +45,975 +1.82%
1961 2.52M +49,295 +1.99%
1960 2.47M

About the indicator

The population living outside urban settlements. In the catalog this quantity was present only as a share, while the absolute number shows what the share does not: the world's rural population stopped growing only in the 2020s and still exceeds three billion people, even though the share has been falling for half a century. Each country defines a city itself, so cross-country comparisons of this series call for caution.

Important: It is computed as the difference between total and urban population, and the criterion for a city is national: in some places it is a settlement of two thousand residents, in others twenty thousand. Comparing the trend within a country is more reliable than comparing countries with each other.

Source: World Population Prospects (UN), license CC BY 3.0 IGO.