Share of urban population using at least basic water services in Malawi

Malawi: Share of urban population using at least basic water services was 86.0% in 2024. ▬ Flat

Latest (2024)
86.0%
Change on year
up 0.1%
World rank
166th
of 188 countries
All-time high
86.0%
in 2024
All-time low
85.8%
in 2022
Years of data
25
2000–2024

Share of urban population using at least basic water services in Malawi, 2000–2024

0204060802000201220242000: 85.8 %2001: 85.8 %2002: 85.8 %2003: 85.8 %2004: 85.8 %2005: 85.8 %2006: 85.8 %2007: 85.8 %2008: 85.8 %2009: 85.8 %2010: 85.8 %2011: 85.8 %2012: 85.8 %2013: 85.8 %2014: 85.8 %2015: 85.8 %2016: 85.8 %2017: 85.8 %2018: 85.8 %2019: 85.8 %2020: 85.8 %2021: 85.8 %2022: 85.8 %2023: 85.9 %2024: 86 %

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

Analysis

Malawi recorded 86.0% for share of urban population using at least basic water services in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 0.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of urban population using at least basic water services in Malawi peaked at 86.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 85.8%, in 2022.

Malawi ranks 166th of 188 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 85.8% 85.8% 85.8% 10
2010s 85.8% 85.8% 85.8% 10
2020s 85.9% 85.8% 86.0% 5

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 163 Congo 87.1% compare
  2. 164 Tanzania 86.2% compare
  3. 165 Liberia 86.0% compare
  4. 167 Marshall Islands 85.8% compare
  5. 168 Haiti 85.5% compare
  6. 169 Papua New Guinea 84.4% compare

See the full ranking of 188 places →

More environment data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of urban population using at least basic water services in Malawi?
Share of urban population using at least basic water services in Malawi was 86.0% 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 urban population using at least basic water services recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 86.0% in 2024.
What is the lowest share of urban population using at least basic water services recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 85.8% in 2022.
How does Malawi rank for share of urban population using at least basic water services?
Malawi ranks 166th out of 188 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of urban population using at least basic water services rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Malawi 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 urban population using at least basic 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 urban population using at least basic 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
188 places, 4,631 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.