Imagine how crammed everyday life is in some of the 10 countries with the highest population density. Imagine waking up in a tiny one-room apartment and making your way through streets packed with traffic and people who follow no rules whatsoever. Life certainly is way more chaotic than needed in these places. However, the people who were born and raised there have the remarkable ability to deal with any disastrous daily situation that this way of life may result in. Some countries are really are tiny, so there isn’t much area left and people have no choice but to build housing that dramatically raises their population density.
A country’s population density is determined by the number of people living on a given measure of area. In this list you will see them in people per square mile. Usually, a lot of other factors help shape this index aside from a country’s size. In certain cases, overpopulation can make even a bigger country get to our list. However, there aren’t any shocking results except some you may never have heard of. Unlike the items on our list of the 14 biggest cities in the world by population, the countries you will see here are mostly in no way impressive in their size or overall population, they are just tightly packed with residents.
Usually the most affected are countries and cities with favorable conditions for life and business. In the ancient ages, those were places with a mild climate and places that have rivers running through or nearby. On the other hand, places like Mongolia or Greenland which have harsh climates and very poor conditions for settling, have some of the least population density in the whole world, with Greenland being on the very bottom of the list. However, here we will consider the exact opposites. Let’s take a look at the 10 countries with the highest population density.
10. Sint Maarten
People per sq.mi: 2 852
Sint Maarten, or Saint Martin for the non-Dutch, barely makes the list as a sovereign state. Having gained independence in 2010, Sint Maarten is a minuscular sovereign state within the Netherlands, whose politics and defense are handled by the Netherlands.
9. Bermuda
People per sq.mi: 3 175
Another almost-a-country, Bermuda (or the Bermudas) is a sovereign British overseas territory that is made up of one bigger main island and about 180 smaller ones. Bermuda is also the eastmost point of the infamous Bermuda Triangle, where many mysterious disappearances have taken place.
8. Malta
People per sq.mi: 3 424
Malta is a miniscule island country in the Mediterranean which is home to about half a million people. Its lack of territory to expand in, and growing population are the reason behind it taking the 8th place on this list. This has also caused many cities there to grow into their neighbors.
7. Bahrain
People per sq.mi: 4 263
Another miniature island country, Bahrain is located in the Persian Gulf and is connected to several neighboring countries. From its location you can correctly deduce that a big part of its income comes from the production of oil. However, the growing population and the depleting resources are big concerns nowadays.
6. Vatican City
People per sq.mi: 4 861
Vatican City, the home of the Pope, is a sovereign state in the heart of Rome – Italy’s capital. While taking only 6th place in our 10 countries with the highest population density countdown, it is the smallest state in the world with the area of a big city square (which it pretty much is).
5. Gibraltar
People per sq.mi: 11 808
Gibraltar is located in a very strategic place where the Mediterranean sea narrows down to about nine miles. Ever since naval transport spread, Gibraltar has been an important control point that brought masses of settlers throughout the past centuries. However, Gibraltar has an area of just above two and a half square miles.
4. Hong Kong
People per sq.mi: 16 444
Hong Kong was a very important port for China until it received it sovereignty. In fact, its name means “Fragrant Port”. It is also the biggest item on our list as far as the area is concerned. Hong Kong is currently one of the most developed and one of the richest places globally.
3. Singapore
People per sq.mi: 18 513
Singapore is another island country on our list. It comes third biggest in terms of area, after Bahrain. This beautiful island country is also known as “Garden Country” due to the impressive amount of trees planted along its streets. Before becoming independent in 1965, Singapore was a part of Malaysia.
2. Monaco
People per sq.mi: 43 830
Monaco is a European dwarf country, notorious for its lack of crime, unemployment and for being one of the richest places in the world. Aside from being a popular tourist destination for the higher classes of society, Monaco’s population does not pay an income tax.
1. Macau
People per sq.mi: 48 003
Macau is one of the two special administrative regions of China, the other being Hong Kong. While being mostly sovereign, these regions still receive some guiding from China. Technically, Macau is a small city with an area of just above eleven square miles and a population of well over half a million which easily makes it the winner in our list of the 10 countries with the highest population density.
