American Samoa: Rural population (% of total population)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, American Samoa's rural population (% of total population) rose 0.43 percentage points on 2024 (from 19.06% to 19.49%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +0.05 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.62 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.43 percentage points in 2025 and the biggest yearly fall was 2.26 percentage points in 1966. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.42 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 100% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 20.7% for 2028. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2023 to 2025 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.12%, against 0.85% for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2025, American Samoa had the 162nd highest value of the 217 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to American Samoa in the 2025 ranking

• Costa Rica — 159th of 217: 20.27%
• Mexico — 160th of 217: 19.96%
• United States — 161st of 217: 19.81%
• Spain — 163rd of 217: 19.49%
• Korea, Rep. — 164th of 217: 18.83%
• Bahamas, The — 165th of 217: 18.67%

What this measures

Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population.

Limitations: Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverage. Estimates of the world's urban population would change significantly if China, India, and a few other populous nations were to change their definition of urban centers. Because the estimates of city and metropolitan area are based on national definitions of what constitutes a city or metropolitan area, cross-country comparisons should be made with caution. To estimate urban populations, UN ratios of urban to total population were applied to the World Bank's estimates of total population.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 66 values

Rural population (% of total population) in nearby economies

• Australia — 12.28% (2025)
• Brunei Darussalam — 24.99% (2025)
• Cambodia — 58.89% (2025)
• China — 33.66% (2025)
• Fiji — 40.46% (2025)
• French Polynesia — 38.24% (2025)
• Guam — 5.78% (2025)
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 0% (2025)
• Indonesia — 40.61% (2025)
• Japan — 7.7% (2025)

More environment data for American Samoa

• Rural population — 8,970 (2025)
• Urban population — 37,059 (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 80.51% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 15 (2024)
• Capture fisheries production (metric tons) — 1,512 (2024)
• Total fisheries production (metric tons) — 1,527 (2024)
• Rural population growth (annual %) — 0.66% (2025)
• Urban population growth (annual %) — -2.12% (2025)
• Agricultural land (sq. km) — 27 (2024)
• Agricultural land (% of land area) — 13.57% (2024)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is American Samoa's rural population (% of total population)?

19.49% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1960?

It is down 42.88 percentage points from 62.37% in 1960. The highest value was 62.37% in 1960 and the lowest 11.39% in 2000.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SP.RUR.TOTL.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), uri: https://population.un.org/wup/, note: World Bank staff estimates based on the United Nations Population Division's World Urbanization Prospects, National definitions, publisher: UN Population Division; Staff estimates, World Bank (WB), note: Wo… Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.