South Africa has a population density of 139.8 people per square mile compared to 1,662 people in Taiwan. South Africa has 205,338 sq ft of land per person vs 16,697 sq ft in Taiwan. South Africa and Taiwan rank 135th and 10th by population density, respectively.
Population density is calculated as the ratio of population to land area. South Africa has 0.79% of the world's population and 0.81% of all countries' land area, compared to 0.29% of the population and 0.02% of the land area for Taiwan, making the population density in South Africa 91.6% lower than in Taiwan.
Population density by year
people per square mile
| Year | Population density | |
|---|---|---|
South Africa
|
Taiwan
|
|
| 2026 | 139.8 | 1,662 |
| 2025 | 138.3 | 1,669 |
| 2024 | 136.7 | 1,675 |
| 2023 | 135 | 1,670 |
| 2022 | 133.2 | 1,669 |
| 2021 | 131.3 | 1,679 |
| 2020 | 129.3 | 1,687 |
| 2019 | 127.2 | 1,688 |
| 2018 | 125.1 | 1,687 |
| 2017 | 123.1 | 1,685 |
| 2016 | 122.3 | 1,683 |
| 2015 | 121.1 | 1,679 |
| 2014 | 118.7 | 1,675 |
| 2013 | 116.7 | 1,670 |
| 2012 | 114.8 | 1,665 |
| 2011 | 113.1 | 1,660 |
| 2010 | 111.8 | 1,656 |
| 2009 | 110.4 | 1,651 |
| 2008 | 109.1 | 1,646 |
| 2007 | 107.9 | 1,640 |
| 2006 | 106.7 | 1,633 |
| 2005 | 105.7 | 1,626 |
| 2004 | 104.6 | 1,620 |
| 2003 | 103.5 | 1,614 |
| 2002 | 102.5 | 1,607 |
| 2001 | 101.6 | 1,599 |
| 2000 | 100.7 | 1,587 |
| 1999 | 99.8 | 1,575 |
| 1998 | 98.7 | 1,562 |
| 1997 | 97.5 | 1,548 |
| 1996 | 96.3 | 1,534 |
| 1995 | 95.1 | 1,522 |
| 1994 | 94 | 1,509 |
| 1993 | 92.4 | 1,495 |
| 1992 | 90.6 | 1,481 |
| 1991 | 89 | 1,467 |
| 1990 | 87 | 1,451 |
| 1989 | 84.6 | 1,435 |
| 1988 | 82.2 | 1,420 |
| 1987 | 79.7 | 1,404 |
| 1986 | 77.2 | 1,389 |
| 1985 | 74.8 | 1,373 |
| 1984 | 72.4 | 1,354 |
| 1983 | 69.9 | 1,335 |
| 1982 | 67.5 | 1,313 |
| 1981 | 65.2 | 1,290 |
| 1980 | 63 | 1,267 |
| 1979 | 61.1 | 1,243 |
| 1978 | 59.5 | 1,219 |
| 1977 | 57.9 | 1,197 |
| 1976 | 56.4 | 1,174 |
| 1975 | 54.9 | 1,150 |
| 1974 | 53.4 | 1,129 |
| 1973 | 51.9 | 1,109 |
| 1972 | 50.4 | 1,089 |
| 1971 | 49 | 1,067 |
| 1970 | 47.6 | 1,043 |
| 1969 | 46.1 | 1,007 |
| 1968 | 44.7 | 969 |
| 1967 | 43.4 | 945 |
| 1966 | 42 | 921 |
| 1965 | 40.8 | 895 |
| 1964 | 39.5 | 868 |
| 1963 | 38.3 | 842 |
| 1962 | 37.2 | 815 |
| 1961 | 36.1 | 789 |
| 1960 | - | 763 |
Data sources: National Statistics, Taiwan (1960–2026, retrieved 2026-02-09); World Bank | Agriculture & Rural Development (1961–2026, retrieved 2026-04-06); United Nations | World Population Prospects (2025–2026, retrieved 2026-03-10).
GeoRank.org/population-density/south-africa/taiwan | CC BY 
From 2006 to 2026, population density in South Africa increased by 31%, compared to a 1.78% growth in Taiwan.
In 2006, South Africa ranked 134th by population density and is 135th now. Taiwan was 8th in 2006 and ranks 10th out of 197 currently.
Population density comparison
|
South Africa
|
Taiwan
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Population density | 139.8 ppl/mi² | 1,662 ppl/mi² |
| Population density rank | 135/197 | 10/197 |
| Population |
65683993
|
23229461
|
| Land area | 468,377 sq mi | 13,976 sq mi |
| Land area per capita | 204,002 sq ft | 16,699 sq ft |
| Rural population | 36.3% | n/a |
| Urban population | 63.7% | n/a |
| Living in agglomerations of 1M+ people | 15% | 70.1% |
Densely populated cities
|
South Africa
|
|
|---|---|
| City | Population |
| Johannesburg | 4.8M |
| Cape Town | 3.78M |
| Soweto | 1.27M |
| Pietermaritzburg | 839K |
| Pretoria | 742K |
| Durban | 595K |
| Rustenburg | 550K |
| Randburg | 337K |
| Port Elizabeth | 312K |
| East London | 267K |
|
Taiwan
|
|
|---|---|
| City | Population |
| New Taipei | 4.05M |
| Taichung | 2.87M |
| Kaohsiung | 2.72M |
| Taipei | 2.44M |
| Taoyuan | 2.35M |
| Tainan | 1.85M |
| Hsinchu | 455K |
| Keelung | 360K |
| Chiayi | 261K |
| Changhua | 221K |
Compare countries by 7 more topics
Population density in other countries
Data sources: World Bank | Agriculture & Rural Development (1961–2026, retrieved 2026-04-06); United Nations | World Population Prospects (1961–2026, retrieved 2026-03-10); National Statistics, Taiwan (1961–2026, retrieved 2026-02-09); U.S. Census Bureau (1961–2025, retrieved 2026-02-08); Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) (2000–2019, retrieved 2026-02-20).
GeoRank.org/population-density/south-africa/taiwan | CC BY
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Data sources:
- World Bank | Agriculture & Rural Development (1961–2026, retrieved 2026-04-06)
- United Nations | World Population Prospects (1961–2026, retrieved 2026-03-10)
- National Statistics, Taiwan (1960–2026, retrieved 2026-02-09)
- U.S. Census Bureau (1961–2025, retrieved 2026-02-08)
- Wikidata (2011–2025, retrieved 2026-02-08)
- Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) (2000–2019, retrieved 2026-02-20)
Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) — you’re free to copy, share, remix, adapt, and use even commercially as long as you give appropriate credit and clearly indicate if you made changes. Other sources may be subject to different license terms.