Rural population — all countries

Rural population — South America

Rural population in South America in 2025 — 63,507,698 people. Since 1960, the indicator has fallen by 12.5%.

2025 63.51M people −0.98% vs 2024
World rank
Period maximum 79.03M people1971
Period minimum 63.51M people2025

Trend over time

1960–2025 · people

Rural population — South America, 1960–202560M65M70M75M80M19601967197419811988199520022009201620231960: 72,614,157 people1962: 74,394,887 people1964: 76,035,249 people1966: 77,384,264 people1968: 78,347,949 people1970: 78,931,230 people1972: 78,934,373 people1974: 78,262,073 people1976: 77,151,500 people1978: 76,031,161 people1980: 75,362,921 people1982: 75,232,686 people1984: 75,217,695 people1986: 75,158,233 people1988: 75,021,445 people1990: 74,803,211 people1992: 74,438,265 people1994: 74,061,394 people1996: 73,364,821 people1998: 71,916,626 people2000: 70,546,706 people2002: 69,970,708 people2004: 69,630,958 people2006: 69,427,253 people2008: 69,178,154 people2010: 68,792,930 people2012: 68,360,086 people2014: 67,867,733 people2016: 67,341,052 people2018: 66,899,667 people2020: 66,253,753 people2022: 65,257,180 people2024: 64,139,312 people2025: 63,507,698 people
Change over the period: −9.11M (−12.54%) Average annual rate: -0.21 %

Comparison, 2025

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

South America 63.51M people
World 3.46B people
Rural population — South America, by year South America All countries CSV XLSX
Year people Change Change, %
2025 63.51M −631,614 −0.98%
2024 64.14M −583,718 −0.9%
2023 64.72M −534,150 −0.82%
2022 65.26M −496,889 −0.76%
2021 65.75M −499,684 −0.75%
2020 66.25M −383,760 −0.58%
2019 66.64M −262,154 −0.39%
2018 66.9M −178,176 −0.27%
2017 67.08M −263,209 −0.39%
2016 67.34M −263,681 −0.39%
2015 67.6M −263,000 −0.39%
2014 67.87M −252,949 −0.37%
2013 68.12M −239,404 −0.35%
2012 68.36M −220,920 −0.32%
2011 68.58M −211,924 −0.31%
2010 68.79M −212,742 −0.31%
2009 69.01M −172,482 −0.25%
2008 69.18M −137,778 −0.2%
2007 69.32M −111,321 −0.16%
2006 69.43M −96,156 −0.14%
2005 69.52M −107,549 −0.15%
2004 69.63M −147,534 −0.21%
2003 69.78M −192,216 −0.27%
2002 69.97M −247,052 −0.35%
2001 70.22M −328,946 −0.47%
2000 70.55M −575,352 −0.81%
1999 71.12M −794,568 −1.1%
1998 71.92M −810,706 −1.11%
1997 72.73M −637,489 −0.87%
1996 73.36M −411,322 −0.56%
1995 73.78M −285,251 −0.39%
1994 74.06M −208,227 −0.28%
1993 74.27M −168,644 −0.23%
1992 74.44M −187,835 −0.25%
1991 74.63M −177,111 −0.24%
1990 74.8M −121,110 −0.16%
1989 74.92M −97,124 −0.13%
1988 75.02M −76,502 −0.1%
1987 75.1M −60,286 −0.08%
1986 75.16M −41,327 −0.05%
1985 75.2M −18,135 −0.02%
1984 75.22M −2,885 −0%
1983 75.22M −12,106 −0.02%
1982 75.23M −43,188 −0.06%
1981 75.28M −87,047 −0.12%
1980 75.36M −239,983 −0.32%
1979 75.6M −428,257 −0.56%
1978 76.03M −534,243 −0.7%
1977 76.57M −586,096 −0.76%
1976 77.15M −586,219 −0.75%
1975 77.74M −524,354 −0.67%
1974 78.26M −409,810 −0.52%
1973 78.67M −262,490 −0.33%
1972 78.93M −93,149 −0.12%
1971 79.03M +96,292 +0.12%
1970 78.93M +242,318 +0.31%
1969 78.69M +340,963 +0.44%
1968 78.35M +432,856 +0.56%
1967 77.92M +530,829 +0.69%
1966 77.38M +628,575 +0.82%
1965 76.76M +720,440 +0.95%
1964 76.04M +795,263 +1.06%
1963 75.24M +845,099 +1.14%
1962 74.39M +881,264 +1.2%
1961 73.51M +899,466 +1.24%
1960 72.61M

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.