According to World Health Organization (WHO), 34 percent of global population lived in cities in 1960 but more than half a century later, the ratio has increased to 54 percent now (WHO). The fact that more and more mega cities have been emerging, primarily in emerging economies (World Future Society), means population will continue to move from countryside to cities. But one thing is clear that country towns won’t completely disappear because they offer some things that cities don’t offer just as cities offer some things that country towns don’t offer. Cities and country towns may be different but they also share certain similarities.

Just as cities have been evolving, even country towns have also been evolving. Like cities, country towns have proper infrastructure in place and more people travel by car than any other mode of transportation. Country towns also have other facilities such as postal office, hospitals, and schools that were once the monopoly of cities. Similarly, certain industries like agricultural sector are not limited to country towns only but have also moved to cities. Another similarity between cities and country towns is that both now host people from almost all economic hierarchies. Just as there are rich and poor people in cities, there are rich and poor people in country towns, too. It may be strange to think of rich people in country towns but high net worth individuals are sometimes attracted to privacy and quiet environment that country towns offer.

While there may be similarities between cities and country towns, the differences are greater in number. One of the major differences between cities and country towns is size. Most country towns may only have few thousand people but it is not uncommon for cities to have populations in millions. As a result, cities tend to be more densely populated than country towns on the average, hence, greater noise and environmental pollution.

Another difference between cities and country towns is that they tend to support mostly different industries. The industries usually supported by country towns are agricultural production and industrial plants because space is available on the cheap and often plenty. On the other hands, cities tend to support more industries due to their huge populations and better infrastructure. Some of the major industries are banking, media, journalism, theater, fashion, and computing (hardware & software).

Another major difference between cities and country towns is that income levels tend to be higher on the average in cities than country towns even when other variables such as socio-economic status are constant (The Center for Rural Pennsylvania). There are several factors why this may be the case. One is education level since people in cities tend to be more educated on the average, given other factors such as socio-economic status are constant. The number of employers also tends to be greater in cities and these include employers who offer higher-pay jobs due to the technical nature of the positions. Another factor may be cost of living since it is relatively more expensive to live in cities as compared to country towns, thus, employers have to take that into account.

As far as recreational activities are concerned, residents in cities and country towns may have different preferences. Sports such as fishing and hunting may be more popular in country towns while skating and baseball etc. may be more popular in cities. One possible factor may be that traditions live longer in country towns as opposed to cities which change at a quicker pace. While many individuals inherit recreational taste from their parents such as love for fishing, those in cities are more open to newer experiences and willing to live a different life than their elders.

Country towns may not have as much diversity as cities when it comes to cultures. This is because cities have much larger populations and in addition, immigrants are more likely to settle in cities where jobs are much more in number as compared to country towns. Thus, the population of a country town may seem quite similar as opposed to cities.

It is clear that both cities and country towns have similarities but the differences between them are greater in number. Most of the people used to living in country towns/villages but this is changing now as cities are experiencing explosive growth rates around the world at the expense of country towns/villages.