Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Bulgaria

Bulgaria: Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services was 97.5% in 2024. ▬ Flat

Latest (2024)
97.5%
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
66th
of 178 countries
All-time high
99.6%
in 2000
All-time low
97.5%
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Bulgaria, 2000–2024

0204060801002000201220242000: 99.6 %2001: 99.5 %2002: 99.5 %2003: 99.4 %2004: 99.3 %2005: 99.2 %2006: 99.1 %2007: 99 %2008: 98.9 %2009: 98.8 %2010: 98.7 %2011: 98.7 %2012: 98.6 %2013: 98.5 %2014: 98.4 %2015: 98.3 %2016: 98.2 %2017: 98.1 %2018: 98 %2019: 97.9 %2020: 97.9 %2021: 97.8 %2022: 97.7 %2023: 97.6 %2024: 97.5 %

Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Bulgaria is 97.5%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and down 0.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Bulgaria peaked at 99.6% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 97.5%, in 2024.

Bulgaria ranks 66th of 178 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 99.2% 98.8% 99.6% 10
2010s 98.3% 97.9% 98.7% 10
2020s 97.7% 97.5% 97.9% 5

Countries ranked near Bulgaria

  1. 63 Jordan 97.8% compare
  2. 64 Portugal 97.8% compare
  3. 65 Kazakhstan 97.6% compare
  4. 67 Mexico 97.5% compare
  5. 68 Bosnia and Herzegovina 97.3% compare
  6. 69 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 97.0% compare

See the full ranking of 178 places →

More environment data for Bulgaria

All data for Bulgaria →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Bulgaria?
Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services in Bulgaria was 97.5% 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 share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services recorded in Bulgaria?
The highest recorded value was 99.6% in 2000.
What is the lowest share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services recorded in Bulgaria?
The lowest recorded value was 97.5% in 2024.
How does Bulgaria rank for share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services?
Bulgaria ranks 66th out of 178 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services rising or falling in Bulgaria?
Over the last ten years it is down 0.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
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 Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services. 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
Share of the rural population using at least a basic drinking water services
Unit
%
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
178 places, 4,351 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of people who use an improved drinking water source, which is either located on their premises, or at a collection point, which takes no more than 30 minutes for a roundtrip.