Rising City Index · November 2026 all 1032 cities ×

Herat

Afghanistan · 1.3 million people · =235 of 1032

Keeping pace, from a low base.

Where it stands (2020–24 data)Low base
Light trendRising
Rising City Index grade BB
49.1 out of 100Based on 6 of 6 forces
What this grade says

Herat scores 49.1 out of 100 against fixed benchmarks. Strongest: economy and people. Weakest: energy and transport. It starts from a low base (2020–24 levels). Night-time light has grown faster since 2022 than before.

How to read the table: every measure is scored from 0 to 100 against a fixed benchmark (the line under each measure), not against other cities. Adding cities never changes this score. Black bars = a score below 15.

MeasureHeratScore against the benchmarkScore
Economy · 100 out of 100
Night-time light, 2015–250 = no growth · 100 = +10% a year (light ×2.6 in a decade) +195% 100
Research output, 2015–240 = no growth · 100 = output ×8 in a decade (+23.1% a year; set high because new journals entering the index inflate growth) · scored only with at least 100 works in 2015 not reported –
Income per person, 2015–20Context, not in the grade: its period ends in the COVID year (2020) +10% –
Connections · 50 out of 100
Fixed internet speed growth, 2020–230 = no gain · 100 = +50% a year · growth counted from at least 15 Mbps −69% 0
Research with foreign co-authors, 2015–240 = no gain in the share of research written with co-authors abroad · 100 = +15 points a decade · scored only with at least 100 works in 2015 not reported –
World attention (Wikipedia readers), 2016–18 to 2023–250 = the city's share of Wikipedia reading does not grow · 100 = it grows 5% a year (×1.4 in seven years) · 3-year averages over at least 3 Wikipedias (10 large ones plus the city's own languages); renamed or new pages left out, one-off news peaks capped at twice the 10-year median +61% 100
Air passengers, 2015–25Extra fact, not in the grade: no single worldwide airport source; filled as official files arrive not reported –
Internet speed reached, 2023Context, not in the grade: a level, not a change (it counts in “where it stands”) 7 Mbps –
Energy · 0 out of 100
Sun and wind added within 100 km, 2015–250 = none · 100 = 350 W per person per decade (the world average pace 2015–25, IRENA) 0.6 W per person 0
Clean share of new power within 100 km, 2015–250 = all new power nearby is fossil · 100 = all of it is clean (solar, wind, hydro, nuclear, geothermal); scored where at least 100 MW was built not reported –
Built-up land lit at night, 2015–25Context, not in the grade: 4 in 10 cities are already fully lit, and street-light dimming or LED switch-overs read as falls +35.1 points –
People · 70 out of 100
Population growth, 2015–250 = shrinking or flat · 100 = +3% a year +43% 100
Human development (region), 2015–200 = no gain · 100 = +0.008 a year · Regional figure: every city in the province shares this value. +0.004 10
Share of residents aged 20–34, 2015–250 = the share aged 20–34 falls 5 points a decade · 100 = it rises 1 point or more · within 25 km · Regional figure: modelled by WorldPop from province-level census ages, so cities in one province can share the same value. +2.9 points 100
Transport · 25 out of 100
Residents near public transport0 = 0% · 100 = 100% (UN target: everyone by 2030) 50% 50
Mobile internet speed growth, 2020–230 = no gain · 100 = mobile speed doubling every year (×8 in three years) · growth counted from at least 15 Mbps −38% 0
Metro and rapid bus opened per million people, 2015–25Extra fact, not in the grade: no single worldwide metro source; filled as official records arrive not reported –
Environment · 49 out of 100
Land built vs people added, 2010–200 = land grows 2× faster than people · 100 = land grows at most 0.35 times as fast 0.23 (1 = land and people grow together) 100
Fine-particle air pollution, 2013–15 to 2021–230 = no fall · 100 = −8% a year (China's 2013–20 pace), or already at or below 5 µg/m³ (the WHO guideline) +11% 0
Greenness of built-up land, 2015–250 = −0.03 a decade (losing green) · 100 = +0.10 a decade +0.031 47
Weakest forces

energy · transport

Its two lowest force scores. Strongest: economy · people.

Sources: NASA Black Marble · EU JRC GHSL Urban Centre Database R2024A (air, greenness, sprawl, human development, internet) and GHS-POP (people within 100 km) · UN-Habitat SDG 11.2.1 · OpenAlex · Global Energy Monitor · airport operators and aviation authorities · metro and transit operators. Mostly Estimates. Every score is measured against a fixed benchmark, not against other cities. Nobody can pay for or submit data to a grade. How the grade works

Measured, never opinion · every number traceable · nobody can buy a grade.

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