Despite what the song “It’s a Small World” tells us, the world is pretty big. We’ve managed to fit eight billion people on it, and that’s impressive — bordering on unsettling. There’s a lot to know about that population as well, in terms of where they’re all located, how they’re spread out, and where else you could fit them if you wanted to get creative. If you’ve never looked into the fun you can have with population density facts, get ready for it! These are 10 staggering facts that will blow your mind.
10 Staggering Facts Overview
10 Loch Ness Could Hold the Entire World’s Population Several Times
Scotland is famous for kilts, haggis, and a lake monster. Loch Ness isn’t just the rumored home of a prehistoric creature that only shows up in blurry photos; it’s actually big enough to hold everyone on the planet.
One of the supposed problems with finding the monster is the fact the loch is just so massive. To make that size more relatable, the loch contains 268 billion cubic feet of water. It’s roughly 800 feet deep and spans 22 square miles. In plain English, you could cram every single person on Earth into the space that Loch Ness occupies – and then you could do it nine more times. When the global population was a modest 7.3 billion, you could have fit them in 15 times over.
So, if you ever doubt whether there’s a monster lurking beneath the surface, just remember the sheer volume you’re dealing with.
9 Kowloon Walled City Had the Densest Population in the World
Before we dive into modern megacities, let’s talk about the most densely packed city ever – Kowloon Walled City, which existed until 1994 before being demolished. Imagine a place where people were constantly irritated by the sheer closeness of everyone around them.
Kowloon Walled City sat inside Hong Kong and, as its name suggests, was literally a city within a wall. Buildings were stacked on top of each other until the scene resembled a sci‑fi dystopia. In that cramped block, 33,000 people squeezed into a single city block. That translates to a density of 1.2 million per square kilometre (or 3.2 million per square mile). By comparison, New York City’s density hovers just above 25,000 per square mile.
Kowloon never truly fell under British administration, turning it into a law‑less enclave where residents could build wherever they wanted. Without regulations, people glued houses together, tore down walls, and built upward and outward. The result was a maze of ramshackle corridors and stairways that left inhabitants cut off from the outside world.
When Britain and China finally agreed on the city’s fate, some residents had to be forcefully removed before the whole area was razed and replaced with gardens, parks, and open spaces.
8 Switzerland Has Nuclear Shelters for Its Entire Population
Nobody wants to experience a nuclear war, but if it ever happens, you’d hope there’s a way to survive. In the past, individuals sometimes built their own fallout shelters, and governments keep some on standby. But what about the average citizen?
If you call home to Switzerland, you can relax. The whole nation can fit inside its fallout shelters because the Swiss are famously prepared. By Swiss law, any building owner must provide a shelter that can house every resident in that building – whether it’s a house or an apartment block.
By 2006, the country boasted 300,000 private shelters plus 5,100 public ones. That capacity can protect 8.6 million people, or 114 % of the nation’s population. In contrast, Sweden’s shelters only cover about 81 % of its citizens.
Since no one has needed to use them yet, many of these shelters double as wine cellars. Still, they remain ready to shield the entire population from a nuclear winter if the need ever arises.
7 The Population of Whittier, Alaska Live in the Same Building
Alaska boasts breathtaking scenery, but it’s not the friendliest place during certain seasons. Venture far enough north and you’ll encounter freezing temperatures where the sun disappears for days. Yet people still manage, especially in Whittier.
Whittier’s only road in and out often shuts down in winter because of its 22 feet of annual snowfall. The tunnel is a single lane and is closed at night, leaving the sea as the only alternative – which can also become impassable. Residents have adapted by essentially living under one roof.
Close to 200 people reside in a single 14‑story building that used to be a military barracks. Inside the structure you’ll find the post office, a bed & breakfast, a grocery store, and even a police station. Kids reach the local school through an underground tunnel.
6 Everyone in Finland Could Pair Up and Take a Sauna at the Same Time
Finland practically lives in saunas. The Finns love them as much as Canadians love donut shops. The whole nation, about 5.5 million strong, boasts roughly three million saunas.
If you’re unsure what a sauna entails, picture a scorching, steamy room where you sit naked (or with a towel or swimsuit) and sweat it out. You can go solo, with friends, or even with strangers – the experience is just heat, steam, and nudity. Occasionally you’ll see someone scrubbing a stranger’s back if asked.
Some Finns spice things up by dashing out into the snow after a hot session, or plunging into icy water – but that’s optional. Almost every apartment complex includes a sauna, and many large businesses have them on site. By the numbers, there are enough saunas for every Finnish person to grab a buddy and enjoy a two‑person sauna simultaneously, with plenty left over for visitors.
5 If Manhattan Had the Same Population Density as Alaska, 29 People Would Live There
To illustrate how wildly population density can differ within a single country, let’s compare two extremes in a playful way. Manhattan, New York, boasts a sky‑high density of roughly 70,000 people per square mile for its 1.6 million residents. That means Manhattan covers about 22.83 square miles.
Alaska, on the other hand, has a sparse density of only 1.28 residents per square mile. If Manhattan were to adopt Alaska’s density, the entire borough would be home to merely 29 people – each enjoying an absurdly generous slice of prime real estate.
4 Le Lignon Is an Apartment Building with a Population Density Similar to Manhattan
Speaking of Manhattan, Switzerland boasts a massive residential complex called Le Lignon that shares a similar density. Both pack people in at comparable rates.
Constructed in the late 1960s, Le Lignon isn’t exactly a beauty queen, but it carries a distinctly Euro‑dystopian vibe as one of the largest housing projects ever built. The kilometer‑long structure houses 6,800 residents across 2,780 apartments.
Born out of a housing crisis, the complex divides opinion: some love its community feel, while outsiders deem the 10‑million‑square‑foot beast an eyesore. Inside, however, residents enjoy pleasant views, spacious living quarters, and a strong sense of community that feels more like a small town than a single building.
The monolithic structure is flanked by identical towers, and its design accommodates numerous amenities – schools, shops, a medical centre, and even a rooftop pool. A four‑room apartment can set you back roughly 2,000 Swiss francs per month (about $2,300 US).
3 Canada’s Territory of Nunavut Has the Lowest Population Density of Any State or Province in the World
We already know Alaska is sparsely populated, but Nunavut in Canada actually takes the crown for the lowest density among all recognized sub‑national regions worldwide – even beating out Greenland.
Nunavut, perched in northern Canada, records a density of 0.02 people per square kilometre (or 0.05 per square mile), a figure often rounded down to essentially zero. By comparison, Greenland sits at 0.14 people per square kilometre.
The territory’s capital, Iqaluit, houses just 7,740 residents. The whole of Nunavut is home to just under 37,000 people, yet it spans an enormous 808,000 square miles – larger than Alaska, more than three times the size of Texas, and almost five times the size of California.
2 Friendship Heights Village in Maryland Is the Most Densely Populated US City
If you guessed that the United States’ most densely packed place would be a major metropolis like New York or Los Angeles, think again. Those cities have large populations, but they also cover huge areas, which dilutes overall density.
The true champion of density in America is the modest town of Friendship Heights Village, Maryland. In 2020, it housed 5,360 residents – not a staggering number, but the town’s footprint is minuscule, covering only 0.06 square miles. That results in a mind‑boggling density of 90,847.5 people per square mile.
The population dipped slightly in 2021, nudging the density a touch higher, but the town still leaves every other U.S. location in the dust.
1 Dhaka, Bangladesh Slums May Have a Population Density of Over 2 Million Per Square Mile
We already saw the jaw‑dropping density of Kowloon Walled City, but today’s urban jungles can rival that intensity. While entire cities might not reach those extremes, certain neighborhoods certainly do – take the slums of Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Estimates suggest the population density in Dhaka’s slums could soar as high as 2.7 million people per square mile. Even the more conservative figures place it at 115,000 per square mile, still eclipsing the densities of megacities like Tokyo, Manila, and Mumbai. Some calculations peg the number at 569,000 per square mile (or 220,000 per square kilometre).
Getting a precise count is challenging because slums are irregular, often lack formal housing, and residents may avoid census takers. Nonetheless, the sheer scale of human concentration in these pockets is staggering.