People using at least a basic drinking water source in Nepal
Nepal: People using at least a basic drinking water source was 27.77 million people in 2024. ▲ Rising
People using at least a basic drinking water source in Nepal, 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
Nepal recorded 27.77 million people for people using at least a basic drinking water source in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.4% on the previous year and up 13.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people using at least a basic drinking water source in Nepal peaked at 27.77 million people in 2024 and was at its lowest, 19.51 million people, in 2000.
That places Nepal 47th out of 231 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
People using at least a basic drinking water source in Nepal, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 19.51 million people | — |
| 2001 | 20.00 million people | +2.5% |
| 2002 | 20.47 million people | +2.3% |
| 2003 | 20.92 million people | +2.2% |
| 2004 | 21.35 million people | +2.1% |
| 2005 | 21.76 million people | +1.9% |
| 2006 | 22.13 million people | +1.7% |
| 2007 | 22.49 million people | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 22.82 million people | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 23.14 million people | +1.4% |
| 2010 | 23.45 million people | +1.3% |
| 2011 | 23.72 million people | +1.1% |
| 2012 | 23.94 million people | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 24.15 million people | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 24.39 million people | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 24.68 million people | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 24.96 million people | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 25.17 million people | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 25.38 million people | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 25.84 million people | +1.8% |
| 2020 | 26.51 million people | +2.6% |
| 2021 | 27.13 million people | +2.4% |
| 2022 | 27.51 million people | +1.4% |
| 2023 | 27.65 million people | +0.5% |
| 2024 | 27.77 million people | +0.4% |
Nepal compared with similar countries
- Nepal's 27.77 million people is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 10.66 million people, 2.6× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Nepal's 27.77 million people is above the median for South Asia, which is 24.30 million people, 1.1× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 21.46 million people | 19.51 million people | 23.14 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 24.57 million people | 23.45 million people | 25.84 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 27.31 million people | 26.51 million people | 27.77 million people | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
More environment data for Nepal
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 2.73 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 2.41 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.265 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.43 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -1.54 % 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 -6.53 % 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 people using at least a basic drinking water source in Nepal?
- People using at least a basic drinking water source in Nepal was 27.77 million 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 using at least a basic drinking water source recorded in Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 27.77 million people in 2024.
- What is the lowest people using at least a basic drinking water source recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 19.51 million people in 2000.
- How does Nepal rank for people using at least a basic drinking water source?
- Nepal ranks 47th out of 231 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people using at least a basic drinking water source rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nepal 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 using at least a basic drinking water source. 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 an improved drinking water source, which is either available on premises, or collection time is no more than 30 minutes for a roundtrip.