Municipal water withdrawal in Romania
Romania: Municipal water withdrawal was 1.29 billion cubic meters in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.29 billion cubic meters
Change on year
up 3.1%
World rank
44th
of 183 countries
All-time high
2.67 billion cubic meters
in 1985
All-time low
980.00 million cubic meters
in 2013
Years of data
54
1970–2023
Municipal water withdrawal in Romania, 1970–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in cubic meters.
Analysis
Romania recorded 1.29 billion cubic meters for municipal water withdrawal in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.1% on the previous year and up 32.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, municipal water withdrawal in Romania peaked at 2.67 billion cubic meters in 1985 and was at its lowest, 980.00 million cubic meters, in 2013.
That places Romania 44th out of 183 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 54 years of available data.
Municipal water withdrawal in Romania, year by year
| Year | cubic meters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 1.47 billion cubic meters | — |
| 1971 | 1.58 billion cubic meters | +7.2% |
| 1972 | 1.68 billion cubic meters | +6.7% |
| 1973 | 1.79 billion cubic meters | +6.3% |
| 1974 | 1.89 billion cubic meters | +5.9% |
| 1975 | 2.00 billion cubic meters | +5.6% |
| 1976 | 2.04 billion cubic meters | +2.0% |
| 1977 | 2.08 billion cubic meters | +2.0% |
| 1978 | 2.12 billion cubic meters | +1.9% |
| 1979 | 2.16 billion cubic meters | +1.9% |
| 1980 | 2.20 billion cubic meters | +1.9% |
| 1981 | 2.29 billion cubic meters | +4.3% |
| 1982 | 2.39 billion cubic meters | +4.1% |
| 1983 | 2.48 billion cubic meters | +3.9% |
| 1984 | 2.58 billion cubic meters | +3.8% |
| 1985 | 2.67 billion cubic meters | +3.6% |
| 1986 | 2.59 billion cubic meters | -3.1% |
| 1987 | 2.50 billion cubic meters | -3.2% |
| 1988 | 2.42 billion cubic meters | -3.4% |
| 1989 | 2.33 billion cubic meters | -3.5% |
| 1990 | 2.25 billion cubic meters | -3.6% |
| 1991 | 2.25 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 2.25 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 2.25 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 2.12 billion cubic meters | -5.6% |
| 1995 | 2.00 billion cubic meters | -5.9% |
| 1996 | 2.02 billion cubic meters | +1.2% |
| 1997 | 2.05 billion cubic meters | +1.2% |
| 1998 | 2.08 billion cubic meters | +1.5% |
| 1999 | 2.11 billion cubic meters | +1.4% |
| 2000 | 2.07 billion cubic meters | -1.9% |
| 2001 | 2.00 billion cubic meters | -3.4% |
| 2002 | 1.86 billion cubic meters | -7.0% |
| 2003 | 1.66 billion cubic meters | -10.8% |
| 2004 | 1.46 billion cubic meters | -12.0% |
| 2005 | 1.26 billion cubic meters | -13.7% |
| 2006 | 1.06 billion cubic meters | -15.9% |
| 2007 | 1.09 billion cubic meters | +3.3% |
| 2008 | 1.13 billion cubic meters | +3.2% |
| 2009 | 1.54 billion cubic meters | +36.7% |
| 2010 | 1.03 billion cubic meters | -33.3% |
| 2011 | 1.00 billion cubic meters | -2.9% |
| 2012 | 1.05 billion cubic meters | +5.3% |
| 2013 | 980.00 million cubic meters | -6.9% |
| 2014 | 1.01 billion cubic meters | +3.6% |
| 2015 | 1.03 billion cubic meters | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 1.05 billion cubic meters | +2.0% |
| 2017 | 1.05 billion cubic meters | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 1.08 billion cubic meters | +3.5% |
| 2019 | 1.16 billion cubic meters | +6.5% |
| 2020 | 1.08 billion cubic meters | -6.7% |
| 2021 | 1.27 billion cubic meters | +17.8% |
| 2022 | 1.26 billion cubic meters | -1.1% |
| 2023 | 1.29 billion cubic meters | +3.1% |
Romania compared with similar countries
- Romania's 1.29 billion cubic meters is above the median for high income countries, which is 699.00 million cubic meters, 1.9× the median. (61 countries reporting)
- Romania's 1.29 billion cubic meters is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 657.50 million cubic meters, 2.0× the median. (50 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Municipal water withdrawal in Romania changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | +36.7% | 1.13 billion cubic meters | 1.54 billion cubic meters |
| 2010 | -33.3% | 1.54 billion cubic meters | 1.03 billion cubic meters |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.88 billion cubic meters | 1.47 billion cubic meters | 2.16 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.44 billion cubic meters | 2.20 billion cubic meters | 2.67 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.14 billion cubic meters | 2.00 billion cubic meters | 2.25 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.51 billion cubic meters | 1.06 billion cubic meters | 2.07 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.04 billion cubic meters | 980.00 million cubic meters | 1.16 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.22 billion cubic meters | 1.08 billion cubic meters | 1.29 billion cubic meters | 4 |
Countries ranked near Romania
More environment data for Romania
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -4.68 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -5.2 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.634 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 2.03 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 0.5647 % 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 -0.1112 % 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 municipal water withdrawal in Romania?
- Municipal water withdrawal in Romania was 1.29 billion cubic meters in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest municipal water withdrawal recorded in Romania?
- The highest recorded value was 2.67 billion cubic meters in 1985.
- What is the lowest municipal water withdrawal recorded in Romania?
- The lowest recorded value was 980.00 million cubic meters in 2013.
- How does Romania rank for municipal water withdrawal?
- Romania ranks 44th out of 183 countries with data for 2023.
- Is municipal water withdrawal rising or falling in Romania?
- Over the last ten years it is up 32.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Romania data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Municipal water withdrawal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Water withdrawn each year for direct use by the population, usually measured as the total supplied by the public distribution network.