Countries by Population Density | Countries by Density 2022

Exactly which countries have the highest population density? China and India are the world’s two most populous countries but not the most densely inhabited. However, China and India are too big to have the most excellent population density.

Several small nations and territories pack more people into each square kilometre than even the most populous huge countries, just as a stadium houses much more people in total, yet a bus is simpler to load to capacity.

For instance, in 2020, the tiny European principality of Monaco had the highest population density of any nation in the world.

Monaco, situated on the French Riviera on the northern border of the Mediterranean Sea, has a population of fewer than 40,000 people, compared to China’s 1.4 billion, but crams them into a paltry two km2 of land area (compared to China’s 9.7 million km2).

Top 10 countries in the world by 2020 for population density:

1. Monaco – 19,361/km²
2. Singapore – 8,019/km²
3. Bahrain – 2,182/km²
4. Maldives – 1,802/km²
5. Malta – 1,642/km²
6. Bangladesh – 1,265/km²
7. Vatican City – 924/km² (2019 figure)
8. Barbados – 668/km²
9. Lebanon – 667/km²
10. Mauritius – 624/km²

The figures are even more striking if one widens the list to include regions now claimed by bigger states, such as Hong Kong and Macau, the Special Administrative Regions of China.

Top 10 most densely populated countries and territories in the world, 2020:

1. Macau (SAR of China)- 19,737/km²
2. Monaco – 19,361/km²
3. Singapore – 8,019/km²
4. Hong Kong (SAR of China) – 7,126/km²
5. Gibraltar (CD of UK) – 3,369/km²
6. Bahrain – 2,182/km²
7. Maldives – 1,802/km²
8. Malta – 1,642/km²
9. Bangladesh – 1,265/km²
10. Sint Maarten (Netherlands) – 1,200/km²

According to the updated rankings, Macau, a Chinese territory, has the greatest population density in the world, with 19,737 inhabitants per square kilometre. Apart from the number one spot held by Macau, three of the top five entries are territories rather than nations.

Hong Kong, another Chinese territory, comes in at number four, while Gibraltar, a royal dependent of the United Kingdom, rounds out the top five.

It’s worth noting that each of these places is rather little. All five of the largest cover less than 2,000 km2 combined. Most are also highly urbanised financial hubs and prefer urban environments like cities and skyscrapers over rural ones like farms and forests.

Also See: What Countries Are in the UK? 2022

Contrarily, several of the world’s biggest nations by geographical size have very low population densities. Canada has a population density of just 4 people per square kilometre, even lower than Russia’s 9 people per square kilometre.

The United States of America has the third-lowest population density in the world, with about 36 people per square kilometre. The population density of the world’s two most populous nations, China and India, is much higher at 146 and 412 per square kilometre.