People not using improved drinking water sources in Bulgaria

Bulgaria: People not using improved drinking water sources was 55,058 people in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
55,058 people
Change on year
up 1.5%
World rank
104th
of 231 countries
All-time high
55,058 people
in 2024
All-time low
20,983 people
in 2000
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People not using improved drinking water sources in Bulgaria, 2000–2024

020.0k40.0k60.0k2000201220242000: 21.0k people2001: 23.2k people2002: 25.2k people2003: 27.3k people2004: 29.2k people2005: 31.1k people2006: 33.0k people2007: 34.7k people2008: 36.4k people2009: 38.0k people2010: 39.6k people2011: 41.1k people2012: 42.4k people2013: 43.8k people2014: 45.1k people2015: 46.4k people2016: 47.6k people2017: 48.7k people2018: 49.7k people2019: 50.7k people2020: 51.7k people2021: 52.5k people2022: 53.3k people2023: 54.2k people2024: 55.1k people

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, people not using improved drinking water sources in Bulgaria stood at 55,058 people. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of up 1.5% on the previous year and up 22.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people not using improved drinking water sources in Bulgaria peaked at 55,058 people in 2024 and was at its lowest, 20,983 people, in 2000.

Bulgaria ranks 104th of 231 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 29,919 people 20,983 people 38,047 people 10
2010s 45,500 people 39,609 people 50,700 people 10
2020s 53,369 people 51,693 people 55,058 people 5

Countries ranked near Bulgaria

  1. 101 Georgia 64,447 people compare
  2. 102 El Salvador 58,760 people compare
  3. 103 Jamaica 55,275 people compare
  4. 105 Djibouti 55,032 people compare
  5. 106 Serbia 49,546 people compare
  6. 107 Italy 49,237 people compare

See the full ranking of 231 places →

More environment data for Bulgaria

All data for Bulgaria →

Frequently asked questions

What is people not using improved drinking water sources in Bulgaria?
People not using improved drinking water sources in Bulgaria was 55,058 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 people not using improved drinking water sources recorded in Bulgaria?
The highest recorded value was 55,058 people in 2024.
What is the lowest people not using improved drinking water sources recorded in Bulgaria?
The lowest recorded value was 20,983 people in 2000.
How does Bulgaria rank for people not using improved drinking water sources?
Bulgaria ranks 104th out of 231 countries with data for 2024.
Is people not using improved drinking water sources rising or falling in Bulgaria?
Over the last ten years it is up 22.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Bulgaria 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 People not using improved drinking water sources. 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

Indicator
People not using improved drinking water sources
Unit
people
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
231 places, 5,586 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Number of people not using improved drinking water sources. These people might use surface water sources or unprotected springs or wells, as no safe and reliable improved drinking water source is available to them.