Drinking water usage in urban areas in Bangladesh
Bangladesh: Drinking water usage in urban areas was 154,994 people in 2024. ▼ Falling
Drinking water usage in urban areas in Bangladesh, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
In 2024, drinking water usage in urban areas in Bangladesh stood at 154,994 people. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.9% on the previous year and down 26.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, drinking water usage in urban areas in Bangladesh peaked at 220,865 people in 2008 and was at its lowest, 154,994 people, in 2024.
That places Bangladesh 18th out of 188 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Drinking water usage in urban areas in Bangladesh, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 208,471 people | — |
| 2001 | 210,475 people | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 213,294 people | +1.3% |
| 2003 | 215,729 people | +1.1% |
| 2004 | 217,732 people | +0.9% |
| 2005 | 219,246 people | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 220,275 people | +0.5% |
| 2007 | 220,818 people | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 220,865 people | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 220,413 people | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 219,485 people | -0.4% |
| 2011 | 218,239 people | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 216,659 people | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 214,552 people | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 211,907 people | -1.2% |
| 2015 | 208,708 people | -1.5% |
| 2016 | 204,987 people | -1.8% |
| 2017 | 200,638 people | -2.1% |
| 2018 | 195,671 people | -2.5% |
| 2019 | 190,183 people | -2.8% |
| 2020 | 184,093 people | -3.2% |
| 2021 | 177,360 people | -3.7% |
| 2022 | 170,368 people | -3.9% |
| 2023 | 163,042 people | -4.3% |
| 2024 | 154,994 people | -4.9% |
Bangladesh compared with similar countries
- Bangladesh's 154,994 people is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 6,494 people, 23.9× the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Bangladesh's 154,994 people is above the median for South Asia, which is 16,828 people, 9.2× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 216,732 people | 208,471 people | 220,865 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 208,103 people | 190,183 people | 219,485 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 169,971 people | 154,994 people | 184,093 people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Bangladesh
More environment data for Bangladesh
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -2.59 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -2.3 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.236 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.67 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.31 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -2.43 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is drinking water usage in urban areas in Bangladesh?
- Drinking water usage in urban areas in Bangladesh was 154,994 people in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest drinking water usage in urban areas recorded in Bangladesh?
- The highest recorded value was 220,865 people in 2008.
- What is the lowest drinking water usage in urban areas recorded in Bangladesh?
- The lowest recorded value was 154,994 people in 2024.
- How does Bangladesh rank for drinking water usage in urban areas?
- Bangladesh ranks 18th out of 188 countries with data for 2024.
- Is drinking water usage in urban areas rising or falling in Bangladesh?
- Over the last ten years it is down 26.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Bangladesh data come from?
- The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Drinking water usage in urban areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of people using drinking water directly collected from surface waters.