Eurostat published its figures which show that on January 2011, 41% of the population of the EU lived in urban regions, 35% in intermediate regions and 23% in rural regions. In addition, in the EU in 2010, the population of urban regions grew by 5.2 per 1000 inhabitants and intermediate regions by 2.2‰, while rural regions decreased by 0.8‰.

Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, published its figures with regard to the population living in urban-intermediate-rural regions in the EU. According to such figures, 41% of the population of the EU lived in urban regions, 35% in intermediate regions and 23% in rural regions on January 2011. The figures are based on a new urban/rural typology developed by the European Commission which consist in a classification of grid cells of 1km² as either urban or rural. To be considered as urban, grid cells should fulfill two conditions: a population density of at least 300 inhabitants per km² and a minimum population of 5,000 inhabitants in contiguous cells above the density threshold. The other cells are considered as rural.

With regard to the figures by Member States, the largest shares of the population living in urban regions were recorded in Malta (100% of the population), the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (both 71%) and Belgium (68%). The largest proportions of the population living in intermediate regions were observed in Sweden (56%), Estonia (52%) and Bulgaria (45%), and the largest shares of the population living in rural areas were registered in Ireland (73%), Slovakia (50%), Estonia (48%) and Hungary (47%).

In addition, in 2010 the population of urban regions grew by 5.2 per 1000 inhabitants and intermediate regions by 2.2‰, while rural regions decreased by 0.8‰. In nearly all Member States, it was in urban regions that the population grew most rapidly. Ireland was an exception with growth in its rural population, while the urban population declined.