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Insights Centre
Cities · Zimbabwe

Harare: what is being built, where people live and where they shop

About 2.6 million people live in the 1,583 km² mapped here. Between mid-2016 and mid-2023, 26.4 km² of new building footprint went up, 48% more than stood in 2016. The most went up 15 to 20 km from the centre.

People in the area mapped2.6 million2025 estimate · 2.1 million in the urban centre itself
New building, 2016 to 202326.4 km²48% added to the 2016 footprint · 10.2 m² per person
Building footprint, 202382.1 km²2.3 km² of it in buildings 12 m and taller
Supermarkets1546.0 per 100,000 people · 69 shopping centres
More than 15 minutes' drive from a supermarket201,0008% of people · 1.2 million more than 30 minutes' walk
Banks, clinics and pharmacies41781 bank branches · 231 hospitals and clinics · 105 pharmacies
How built up IndividualBuilding height IndividualTaller buildings Individual
Every building by the year it first appears: Individual
Loading the map…
New building since 2016
Under 2.5 ha2.5 ha to 10 ha10 ha to 20 ha20 ha to 25 ha25 ha and more
Building footprint added between mid-2016 and mid-2023, from satellite imagery (Google Open Buildings 2.5D Temporal). Free map: areas of about 5 km². The detailed map, in areas of about 0.74 km², is part of the Individual plan.
Built-up urban centreArea mapped

The detailed map of Harare is part of the Individual plan

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Where Harare is building

New building footprint by distance from the centre, the long-run picture since 1975, and how Harare compares.

Most new building went up 15 to 20 km from the centre


Building footprint added between mid-2016 and mid-2023, by distance from the city centre.

0 ha2.0 km²4.0 km²6.0 km²8.0 km²10 km²29 ha0 to 2 km1.5 km²2 to 5 km5.0 km²5 to 10 km6.8 km²10 to 15 km8.9 km²15 to 20 km3.9 km²20 to 30 km19 ha30 to 50 km
Source: Google Open Buildings·dotzedw Insights Centre

Built-up area of the urban centre, 1975 to 2030


Square kilometres of built-up surface. 2025 and 2030 are projections.

0.0 km²20 km²40 km²60 km²80 km²100 km²120 km²140 km²197519801985199019952000200520102015202020252030
Source: GHSL, European Commission·dotzedw Insights Centre

People in the urban centre, 1975 to 2030


2025 and 2030 are projections.

0k500k1.0m1.5m2.0m2.5m197519801985199019952000200520102015202020252030
Source: GHSL, European Commission·dotzedw Insights Centre

New building since 2016, city by city


Building footprint added between mid-2016 and mid-2023 in each area mapped, with the increase on 2016.

Johannesburg and Pretoria111 km²30% more
Dar es Salaam54.5 km²56% more
Luanda43.5 km²53% more
Cape Town38.4 km²37% more
Durban31.4 km²31% more
Lusaka28.9 km²51% more
Kinshasa28.4 km²82% more
Harare26.4 km²48% more
Maputo and Matola25.5 km²55% more
Lilongwe13.7 km²62% more
Gaborone8.3 km²50% more
Windhoek5.4 km²42% more
Source: Google Open Buildings·dotzedw Insights Centre

Rents and prices, as reported

Prime office rent, CBDUS$7 per m² a monthYield 6%. CBD vacancy about 50%, as firms move to converted houses in the suburbs.H1 2026 · Knight Frank, Africa Office Market Dashboard H1 2026
Prime office rent, suburbsUS$10 per m² a monthYield 9%.H1 2026 · Knight Frank, Africa Office Market Dashboard H1 2026

Quoted as published; checked 14 October 2026.

Shops and services in Harare

What is mapped, which chains lead and how Harare compares on supermarkets for its population.

What is mapped


Places in the area mapped, by kind.

Supermarkets, wholesalers, markets and small shops327
Fast food, restaurants and cafés427
Filling stations and hotels450
Clothing, furniture, hardware and electronics582
Banks and ATMs102
Shopping centres69
Hospitals, clinics and pharmacies336
Source: OpenStreetMap, Overture Maps·dotzedw Insights Centre

Supermarkets for every 100,000 people


Supermarkets mapped, against people in each area mapped.

Gaborone27.2
Windhoek24.7
Johannesburg and Pretoria22.3
Cape Town21.2
Durban16.5
Harare6.0
Lusaka4.2
Maputo and Matola3.4
Dar es Salaam3.3
Lilongwe3.3
Luanda1.4
Kinshasa1.0
Source: OpenStreetMap, Overture Maps, GHSL·dotzedw Insights Centre

The biggest chains by outlets mapped

ChainKindOutlets
TotalEnergiesFilling station64
Chicken InnFast food40
ZuvaFilling station34
Pick n PaySupermarket23
Pizza InnFast food23
Nando'sFast food22
SparSupermarket21
PumaFilling station20
EngenFilling station18
OK ZimbabweSupermarket10

The top 25, and every outlet on the map: Individual

Catchments

201,000 people in the area mapped (8%) live more than 15 minutes' drive from a supermarket, and 1.2 million more than 30 minutes' walk from one. A catchment shows who lives within a given time of a site, using the road network at off-peak speeds: how many people, what was built there since 2016, and which shops compete for them.

  • Every shopping centre's 30-minute drive-time catchment, with people and competitors inside (Individual plan).
  • Catchments for any site you choose, by car or on foot, for 10 to 30 minutes (Professional plan).

Shopping centre catchments is part of the Individual plan

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Data built 14 October 2026. Sources and method