Thika — UN urban centre
Thika: 143,379 people. Reference: 2025 annual estimate · World rank #4,259 of 12,138 source urban centres. Source: UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025 (CC BY 3.0 IGO). Source identifier: 2495; territory: Kenya (KEN). UN source workbook.
Method: Degree of Urbanisation (contiguous 1 km2 cells, density 1,500+ people/km2, total 50,000+). This is a source-defined urban centre, not a municipality or province. No association with a separate administrative entity is inferred from proximity or name.
Source centroid: -1.0564, 37.0889. National context uses World Bank estimates, a separate series and geography; no national share is inferred here.
UN population series
| Year | People | Method |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 52,261 | Estimate |
| 1990 | 83,927 | Estimate |
| 1995 | 93,373 | Estimate |
| 2000 | 100,307 | Estimate |
| 2005 | 107,642 | Estimate |
| 2010 | 118,691 | Estimate |
| 2015 | 125,590 | Estimate |
| 2020 | 126,187 | Estimate |
| 2025 | 143,379 | Estimate |
| 2030 | 162,759 | Projection |
| 2035 | 209,452 | Projection |
| 2040 | 229,827 | Projection |
| 2045 | 244,152 | Projection |
| 2050 | 263,121 | Projection |
Largest UN urban centres · Fastest-growing urban centres
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This page is a structured reference entry. Its sources, geographic definition and reference dates determine what the figures mean; it is not independent reporting about the causes of change. Read the accompanying explanation before comparing different places or vintages.