Bawshar: population and official figures
In depth
- Economy, jobs and prices in Bawshar: The unemployment rate in Muscat Governorate, which contains Bawshar, was 1.4% in 2025 (0.7% for men and 3.6% for women), against 3.1% for Oman. The National Centre for Statistics publishes this by governorate only. That is joint lowest of 19 wilayats covered on this site.
- Health in Bawshar: Muscat Governorate, which contains Bawshar, had 15 government hospitals with 3,467 beds and 21 private hospitals with 1,278 beds in 2025; Oman had 62 government hospitals (6,962 beds) and 36 private hospitals (1,854 beds).
- Education in Bawshar: Muscat Governorate, which contains Bawshar, had 594 schools, 11,034 classes, 274,679 students and 21,636 teachers in 2025/2026 (government, private and international schools, including kindergartens).
What is the population of Bawshar?
The Wilayat of Bawshar (Muscat Governorate) had 445,240 registered residents at the end of December 2025, according to the National Centre for Statistics and Information: 97,713 Omanis and 347,527 expatriates. That is 8.3% of the 5,359,557 people in Oman. That is 2nd highest of 19 wilayats covered on this site.
Source: National Centre for Statistics and Information (Oman) · saved copyHow many expats live in Bawshar?
In the Wilayat of Bawshar, 21.9% of registered residents were Omani and 78.1% expatriates at the end of 2025; across Oman the split was 56.7% Omani and 43.3% expatriate. That is 2nd least Omani of 19 wilayats covered on this site.
Source: National Centre for Statistics and Information (Oman) · saved copyIs the population of Bawshar growing?
The registered population of the Wilayat of Bawshar was +1.0% on a year earlier (440,899 at end-2024) and +7.9% on two years earlier (412,690 at end-2023); Oman as a whole was +3.8% over the two years. That is 3rd fastest-growing of 19 wilayats covered on this site.
Source: National Centre for Statistics and Information (Oman) · saved copyHow crowded is Bawshar?
Muscat Governorate had 1,532,486 people at the end of 2025 on 4,000 square kilometres, a density of 383.1 people per square kilometre against 17.3 for Oman. The Wilayat of Bawshar accounts for 29% of the governorate's population.
Source: National Centre for Statistics and Information (Oman) · saved copyHow big is Bawshar compared with other wilayats?
The registered population of the Wilayat of Bawshar (445,240) was 11.1% of the combined population of the 19 Omani wilayats covered on this site, which together hold 75% of Oman.
Source: National Centre for Statistics and Information (Oman) · saved copyThe UN marks this figure as an estimate of lower reliability.
Cities of a similar size in Oman
- As Seeb 594,155
- Salalah 430,294
- Sohar 293,446
- Barka 249,479
- Mutrah 225,926
- As Suwayq 214,198
- Ibri 188,862
- Saham 177,024
- Al Amrat 156,507
- Nizwa 148,746
- Al Rustaq 141,249
- Sur 129,511
- Jaalan Bani Bu Ali 125,828
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Sources
- National Centre for Statistics and Information (Oman): Statistical Year Book 2026 (issue 54, data for 2025): Table 18-2, Schools, Classrooms, Students and Teachers by Governorate, 2025/2026 (pages 361-362), read 28 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 67371bf3473d…)
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