Urban area

"Built up area" redirects here. For the Highway Code, see Built-up area (Highway Code).

"Urban agglomeration" redirects here. For city clusters, see Megalopolis.

An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbanism, the term contrasts to rural areas such as villages and hamlets; in urban sociology or urban anthropology it contrasts with natural environment. The creation of earlier predecessors of urban areas during the urban revolution led to the creation of human civilization with modern urban planning, which along with other human activities such as exploitation of natural resources led to a human impact on the environment. "Agglomeration effects" are in the list of the main consequences of increased rates of firm creation since. This is due to conditions created by a greater level of industrial activity in a given region. However, a favorable environment for human capital development would also be generated simultaneously.^[1]

Greater Tokyo Area, Japan, the world's most populated urban area, with about 39 million inhabitants

Greater São Paulo at night seen from the International Space Station

In 1950, around the world, 764 million people lived in urban areas. By 2014, it was 3.9 billion. The change was driven by a combination of increased total population and increased percent of population living in urban areas.^[2] In 2009, the number of people living in urban areas (3.42 billion) surpassed the number living in rural areas (3.41 billion), and since then the world has become more urban than rural.^[3] This was the first time that the majority of the world's population lived in a city.^[4] In 2014 there were 7.3 billion people living on the planet,^[5] of which the global urban population comprised 3.9 billion. The Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs at that time predicted the urban population would occupy 68% of the world population by 2050, with 90% of that growth coming from Africa and Asia.^[6]

The UN publishes data on cities, urban areas and rural areas, but relies almost entirely on national definitions of these areas. The UN principles and recommendations state that due to different characteristics of urban and rural areas across the globe, a global definition is not possible.^[7]

Urban areas are created and further developed by the process of urbanization. They are measured for various purposes, including analyzing population density and urban sprawl. Urban areas are also mostly found in the United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Japan and Australia and many other countries where the urbanization rate is over 80%.

Unlike an urban area, a metropolitan area includes not only the urban area, but also satellite cities plus intervening rural land that is socio-economically connected to the urban core city, typically by employment ties through commuting, with the urban core city being the primary labor market.

The concept of an "urban area" as used in economic statistics should not be confused with the concept of the "urban area" used in road safety statistics. This term was first created by Geographer Brian Manning. The last concept is also known as "built-up area in road safety". According to the definition by the Office for National Statistics, "Built-up areas are defined as land which is 'irreversibly urban in character', meaning that they are characteristic of a town or city. They include areas of built-up land with a minimum of 20 hectares (200,000 m²; 49 acres). Any areas [separated by] less than 200 metres [of non-urban space] are linked to become a single built-up area.^[8]

Urban land area (km²), 2010^[9]

Urban areas with at least one million inhabitants in 2006

Argentina and Japan are countries where the urbanization rate is over 90% while Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico and the United States are countries where the urbanization rate is between 80% and 90%.

Largest urban areas in the world

^[10]

1.   Tokyo (Japan) - 37,274,000
2.   New Delhi (India) - 32,066,000
3.   Shanghai (China) - 28,517,000
4.   Manila (Philippines) - 28,250,517
5.   Dhaka (Bangladesh) - 22,478,000
6.   São Paulo (Brazil) - 22,430,000
7.   Mexico City (Mexico) - 22,085,000
8.   Cairo (Egypt) - 21,750,000
9.   Beijing (China) - 21,333,000
10.   Mumbai (India) - 20,961,000

Largest urban areas, by continent

^[10][11]

Africa

1.   Cairo (Egypt) - 21,750,000
2.   Kinshasa (DR Congo) - 15,628,000
3.   Lagos (Nigeria) - 15,388,000
4.   Johannesburg (South Africa) - 10,110,000
5.   Luanda (Angola) - 8,952,000
6.   Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) - 7,405,000
7.   Khartoum (Sudan) - 6,160,000
8.   Abidjan (Ivory Coast) - 5,516,000
9.   Alexandria (Egypt) - 5,484,000
10.   Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) - 5,228,000

Asia

1.   Tokyo (Japan) - 37,274,000
2.   New Delhi (India) - 32,066,000
3.   Shanghai (China) - 28,517,000
4.   Manila (Philippines) - 28,250,517
5.   Dhaka (Bangladesh) - 22,478,000
6.   Beijing (China) - 21,333,000
7.   Mumbai (India) - 20,961,000
8.   Osaka (Japan) - 19,060,000
9.   Karachi (Pakistan) - 16,840,000
10.   Chongqing (China) - 16,875,000

Europe

1.   Istanbul (Turkiye) - 15,636,000
2.   Moscow (Russia) - 12,641,000
3.   Paris (France) - 11,142,000
4.   London (United Kingdom) - 9,426,000
5.   Madrid (Spain) - 6,714,000
6.   Berlin (Germany) - 6,144,600
7.   Barcelona (Spain) - 5,658,000
8.   Saint Petersburg (Russia) - 5,536,000
9.   Rome (Italy) - 4,298,000
10.   Athens (Greece) - 3,154,000

North America

1.   Mexico City (Mexico) - 22,085,000
2.   New York - Newark (United States) - 18,867,000
3.   Los Angeles - Long Beach - Santa Ana (United States) - 12,488,000
4.   Chicago (United States) - 8,901,000
5.   Houston (United States) - 6,603,000
6.   Dallas - Fort Worth (United States) - 6,488,400
7.   Toronto (Canada) - 6,313,000
8.   Miami (United States) - 6,079,000
9.   Philadelphia (United States) - 5,705,000
10.   Washington, D.C. - Baltimore (United States) - 5,434,000

Oceania

1.   Melbourne (Australia) - 4,870,000
2.   Sydney (Australia) - 4,859,000
3.   Brisbane (Australia) - 2,568,927
4.   Perth (Australia) - 2,016,000
5.   Auckland (New Zealand) - 1,582,000
6.   Adelaide (Australia) - 1,328,000
7.   Gold Coast (Australia) - 687,000
8.   Canberra (Australia) - 452,000
9.   Newcastle (Australia) - 447,000
10.   Wellington (New Zealand) - 413,000

South America

1.   São Paulo (Brazil) - 22,430,000
2.   Buenos Aires (Argentina) - 15,370,000
3.   Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) - 13,634,000
4.   Bogotá (Colombia) - 11,344,000
5.   Lima - Callao (Peru) - 11,176,000
6.   Santiago (Chile) - 6,857,000
7.   Belo Horizonte (Brazil) - 6,194,000
8.   Brasília (Brazil) - 4,804,000
9.   Recife (Brazil) - 4,220,000
10.   Porto Alegre (Brazil) - 4,185,000

Largest urban areas, by country

^[10]

Afghanistan

4.589 million KABUL (capital) (2023)

Albania

520,000 TIRANA (capital) (2023)

Algeria

2.854 million ALGIERS (capital) ; 922,000 Oran (2022)

American Samoa

49,000 PAGO PAGO (capital) (2018)

Andorra

23,000 ANDORRA LA VELLA (capital) (2018)

Angola

9.292 million LUANDA (capital), 959,000 Lubango, 905,000 Cabinda, 809,000 Benguela, 783,000 Malanje (2023)

Anguilla

1,000 THE VALLEY (capital) (2018)

Antigua and Barbuda

21,000 SAINT JOHN'S (capital) (2018)

Argentina

15.490 million BUENOS AIRES (capital), 1.612 million Cordoba, 1.594 million Rosario, 1.226 million Mendoza, 1.027 million San Miguel de Tucuman, 914,000 La Plata (2023)

Armenia

1.095 million YEREVAN (capital) (2023)

Aruba

30,000 ORANJESTAD (capital) (2018)

Australia

5.235 million Melbourne, 5.121 million Sydney, 2.505 million Brisbane, 2.118 million Perth, 1.367 million Adelaide, 472,000 CANBERRA (capital) (2023)

Austria

1.975 million VIENNA (capital) (2023)

Azerbaijan

2.432 million BAKU (capital) (2023)

Bahamas, The

280,000 NASSAU (capital) (2018)

Bahrain

689,000 MANAMA (capital) (2022)

Bangladesh

23.210 million DHAKA (capital), 5.380 million Chittagong, 955,000 Khulna, 962,000 Rajshahi, 964,000 Sylhet, 906,000 Bogra (2023)

Barbados

89,000 BRIDGETOWN (capital) (2018)

Belarus

2.049 million MINSK (capital) (2022)

Belgium

2.110 million BRUSSELS (capital); 1.053 million Antwerp (2022)

Belize

23,000 BELMOPAN (capital) (2018)

Benin

285,000 PORTO-NOVO (capital) (2018) ; 1.189 million Abomey-Calavi ; 709,000 COTONOU (seat of government) (2022)

Bermuda

10,000 HAMILTON (capital) (2018)

Bhutan

203,000 THIMPHU (capital) (2018)

Bolivia

1.908 million LA PAZ (capital) ; 1.784 million Santa Cruz ; 1.369 million Cochabamba ; 278,000 Sucre (constitutional capital) (2022)

Bosnia and Herzegovina

344,000 SARAJEVO (capital) (2022)

Botswana

269,000 GABORONE (capital) (2018)

Brazil

22.620 million Sao Paulo, 13.728 million Rio de Janeiro, 6.248 million Belo Horizonte, 4.873 million BRASILIA (capital), 4.264 million Recife, 4.212 million Porto Alegre (2023)

British Virgin Islands

15,000 ROAD TOWN (capital) (2018)

Brunei

241,000 BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (capital) (2011)

Bulgaria

1.287 million SOFIA (capital) (2022)

Burkina Faso

3.056 million OUAGADOUGOU (capital) ; 1.074 million Bobo-Dioulasso (2022)

Burundi

1.139 million BUJUMBURA (capital) (2022)

Cabo Verde

168,000 PRAIA (capital) (2018)

Cambodia

2.211 million PHNOM PENH (capital) (2022)

Cameroon

4.164 million YAOUNDE (capital) ; 3.927 million Douala (2022)

Canada

6.372 million Toronto, 4.308 million Montreal, 2.657 million Vancouver, 1.640 million Calgary, 1.544 million Edmonton, 1.437 million OTTAWA (capital) (2023)

Cayman Islands

35,000 GEORGE TOWN (capital) (2018)

Central African Republic

933,000 BANGUI (capital) (2022)

Chad

1.533 million N'DJAMENA (capital) (2022)

Chile

6.903 million SANTIAGO (capital), 1.009 million Valparaiso, 912,000 Concepcion (2023)

China

29.211 million Shanghai, 21.766 million BEIJING (capital), 17.341 million Chongqing, 14.284 million Guangzhou, 14.239 million Tianjin, 13.073 million Shenzhen (2023)

Colombia

11.508 million BOGOTA (capital), 4.102 million Medellin, 2.864 million Cali, 2.349 million Barranquilla, 1.381 million Bucaramanga, 1.088 million Cartagena (2023)

Comoros

62,000 MORONI (capital) (2018)

Congo, Democratic Republic of the

16.316 million KINSHASA (capital), 2.892 million Mbuji-Mayi, 2.812 million Lubumbashi, 1.664 million Kananga, 1.423 million Kisangani, 1.249 million Bukavu (2023)

Congo, Republic of the

2.638 million BRAZZAVILLE (capital), 1.336 million Pointe-Noire (2023)

Costa Rica

1.441 million SAN JOSE (capital) (2022)

Cote d'Ivoire

231,000 YAMOUSSOUKRO (capital) (2018) ; 5.516 million ABIDJAN (seat of government) (2022)

Croatia

684,000 ZAGREB (capital) (2022)

Cuba

2.149 million HAVANA (capital) (2023)

Curacao

144,000 WILLEMSTAD (capital) (2018)

Cyprus

269,000 NICOSIA (capital) (2018)

Czech Republic

1.318 million PRAGUE (capital) (2022)

Denmark

1.370 million COPENHAGEN (capital) (2022)

Djibouti

591,000 DJIBOUTI (capital) (2022)

Dominica

15,000 ROSEAU (capital) (2018)

Dominican Republic

3.524 million SANTO DOMINGO (capital) (2023)

Ecuador

3.142 million Guayaquil, 1.957 million QUITO (capital) (2023)

Egypt

22.183 million CAIRO (capital), 5.588 million Alexandria, 778,000 Bur Sa'id (2023)

El Salvador

1.116 million SAN SALVADOR (capital) (2023)

Equatorial Guinea

297,000 MALABO (capital) (2018)

Eritrea

1.073 million ASMARA (capital) (2023)

Estonia

452,000 TALLINN (capital) (2022)

Eswatini

68,000 MBABANE (capital) (2018)

Ethiopia

5.461 million ADDIS ABABA (capital) (2023)

Falkland Islands

2,000 STANLEY (capital) (2018)

Faroe Islands

21,000 TÓRSHAVN (capital) (2018)

Fiji

178,000 SUVA (capital) (2018)

Finland

1.328 million HELSINKI (capital) (2022)

France

11.208 million PARIS (capital), 1.761 million Lyon, 1.628 million Marseille-Aix-en-Provence, 1.079 million Lille, 1.060 million Toulouse, 1.000 million Bordeaux (2023)

French Polynesia

136,000 PAPEETE (capital) (2018)

Gabon

857,000 LIBREVILLE (capital) (2022)

Gambia, The

470,000 BANJUL (capital) (2022)

Georgia

1.203 million TBILISI (capital) (2022)

Germany

3.574 million BERLIN (capital), 1.788 million Hamburg, 1.576 million Munich, 1.144 million Cologne, 796,000 Frankfurt (2023)

Ghana

3.630 million Kumasi ; 2.605 million ACCRA (capital) ; 1.035 million Sekondi Takoradi (2022)

Gibraltar

35,000 GIBRALTAR (capital) (2018)

Greece

3.154 million ATHENS (capital) ; 814,000 Thessaloniki (2022)

Greenland

18,000 NUUK (capital) (2018)

Grenada

39,000 SAINT GEORGE'S (capital) (2018)

Guam

147,000 HAGATNA (capital) (2018)

Guatemala

3.095 million GUATEMALA CITY (capital) (2023)

Guernsey

16,000 SAINT PETER PORT (capital) (2018)

Guinea

2.049 million CONAKRY (capital) (2022)

Guinea-Bissau

643,000 BISSAU (capital) (2022)

Guyana

110,000 GEORGETOWN (capital) (2018)

Haiti

2.915 million PORT-AU-PRINCE (capital) (2022)

Holy See

1,000 VATICAN CITY (capital) (2018)

Honduras

1.568 million TEGUCIGALPA (capital), 982,000 San Pedro Sula (2023)

Hong Kong

7.643 million Hong Kong (2022)

Hungary

1.775 million BUDAPEST (capital) (2022)

Iceland

216,000 REYKJAVÍK (capital) (2018)

India

32.941 million NEW DELHI (capital), 21.297 million Mumbai, 15.333 million Kolkata, 13.608 million Bangalore, 11.776 million Chennai, 10.801 million Hyderabad (2023)

Indonesia

11.249 million JAKARTA (capital), 3.729 million Bekasi, 3.044 million Surabaya, 3.041 million Depok, 2.674 million Bandung, 2.514 million Tangerang (2023)

Iran

9.500 million TEHRAN (capital), 3.368 million Mashhad, 2.258 million Esfahan, 1.721 million Shiraz, 1.661 million Tabriz, 1.594 million Karaj (2023)

Iraq

7.711 million BAGHDAD (capital), 1.792 million Mosul, 1.448 million Basra, 1.075 million Kirkuk, 958,000 Najaf, 897,000 Erbil (2023)

Ireland

1.256 million DUBLIN (capital) (2022)

Isle of Man

27,000 DOUGLAS (capital) (2018)

Israel

4.344 million Tel Aviv-Yafo ; 1.254 million JERUSALEM (capital) ; 1.164 million Haifa (2022)

Italy

4.316 million ROME (capital), 3.155 million Milan, 2.179 million Naples, 1.802 million Turin, 913,000 Bergamo, 850,000 Palermo (2023)

Jamaica

595,000 KINGSTON (capital) (2022)

Japan

37.194 million TOKYO (capital), 19.013 million Osaka, 9.569 million Nagoya, 5.490 million Kitakyushu-Fukuoka, 2.937 million Shizuoka-Hamamatsu, 2.666 million Sapporo (2023)

Jersey

34,000 SAINT HELIER (capital) (2018)

Jordan

2.210 million AMMAN (capital) (2022)

Kazakhstan

1.987 million Almaty, 1.291 million NUR-SULTAN (capital), 1.155 million Shimkent (2023)

Kenya

5.325 million NAIROBI (capital), 1.440 million Mombassa (2023)

Kiribati

64,000 TARAWA (capital) (2018)

Korea, North

3.158 million PYONGYANG (capital) (2023)

Korea, South

9.988 million SEOUL (capital), 3.472 million Busan, 2.849 million Incheon, 2.181 million Daegu (Taegu), 1.577 million Daejon (Taejon), 1.529 million Gwangju (Kwangju) (2023)

Kosovo

216,870 PRISTINA (capital) (2019)

Kuwait

3.298 million KUWAIT (capital) (2023)

Kyrgyzstan

1.105 million BISHKEK (capital) (2023)

Laos

706,000 VIENTIANE (capital) (2022)

Latvia

625,000 RIGA (capital) (2022)

Lebanon

2.433 million BEIRUT (capital) (2022)

Lesotho

202,000 MASERU (capital) (2018)

Liberia

1.623 million MONROVIA (capital) (2022)

Libya

1.183 million TRIPOLI (capital), 984,000 Misratah, 859,000 Benghazi (2023)

Liechtenstein

5,000 VADUZ (capital) (2018)

Lithuania

541,000 VILNIUS (capital) (2022)

Luxembourg

120,000 LUXEMBOURG (capital) (2018)

Madagascar

3.700 million ANTANANARIVO (capital) (2022)

Malawi

1.222 million LILONGWE (capital) ; 995,000 Blantyre-Limbe (2022)

Malaysia

8.622 million KUALA LUMPUR (capital), 1.086 million Johor Bahru, 857,000 Ipoh (2023)

Maldives

177,000 MALE (capital) (2018)

Mali

2.817 million BAMAKO (capital) (2022)

Malta

213,000 VALLETTA (capital) (2018)

Marshall Islands

31,000 MAJURO (capital) (2018)

Mauritania

1.432 million NOUAKCHOTT (capital) (2022)

Mauritius

149,000 PORT LOUIS (capital) (2018)

Mexico

22.281 million MEXICO CITY (capital), 5.420 million Guadalajara, 5.117 million Monterrey, 3.345 million Puebla, 2.626 million Toluca de Lerdo, 2.260 million Tijuana (2023)

Federated States of Micronesia

7,000 PALIKIR (capital) (2018)

Moldova

491,000 CHISINAU (capital) (2022)

Monaco

39,000 MONACO (capital) (2018)

Mongolia

1.645 million ULAANBAATAR (capital) (2022)

Montenegro

177,000 PODGORICA (capital) (2018)

Morocco

3.893 million Casablanca, 1.959 million RABAT (capital), 1.290 million Fes, 1.314 million Tangier, 1.050 million Marrakech, 979,000 Agadir (2023)

Mozambique

1.797 million Matola ; 1.139 million MAPUTO (capital) ; 927,000 Nampula (2022)

Myanmar (Burma)

5.610 million RANGOON (Yangon) (capital), 1.532 million Mandalay (2023)

Namibia

461,000 WINDHOEK (capital) (2022)

Nepal

1.521 million KATHMANDU (capital) (2022)

Netherlands

2.48 million AMSTERDAM (capital), 2.40 million Rotterdam - The Hague (2022)

New Caledonia

198,000 NOUMEA (capital) (2018)

New Zealand

1.652 million Auckland, 419,000 WELLINGTON (capital) (2022)

Nicaragua

1.095 million MANAGUA (capital) (2023)

Niger

1.384 million NIAMEY (capital) (2022)

Nigeria

15.946 million Lagos, 4.348 million Kano, 3.875 million Ibadan, 3.840 million ABUJA (capital), 3.480 million Port Harcourt, 1.905 million Benin City (2023)

Niue

1,000 ALOFI (capital) (2018)

North Macedonia

606,000 SKOPJE (capital) (2022)

Northern Mariana Islands

51,000 SAIPAN (capital) (2018)

Norway

1.071 million OSLO (capital) (2022)

Oman

1.623 million MUSCAT (capital) (2022)

Pakistan

17.236 million Karachi, 13.979 million Lahore, 3.711 million Faisalabad, 2.415 million Gujranwala, 2.412 million Peshawar, 1.232 million ISLAMABAD (capital) (2023)

Palau

277 NGERULMUD (capital) (2018)

Palestine

756,000 Gaza ; 153,237 RAMALLAH (Capital) (2022)

Panama

1.977 million PANAMA CITY (capital) (2023)

Papua New Guinea

410,000 PORT MORESBY (capital) (2023)

Paraguay

3.511 million ASUNCION (capital) (2023)

Peru

11.204 million LIMA (capital), 959,000 Arequipa, 904,000 Trujillo (2023)

Philippines

14.667 million MANILA (capital), 1.949 million Davao, 1.025 million Cebu City, 931,000 Zamboanga, 960,000 Antipolo, 803,000 Cagayan de Oro City, 803,000 Dasmarinas (2023)

Poland

1.798 million WARSAW (capital), 769,000 Krakow (2023)

Portugal

3.001 million LISBON (capital), 1.325 million Porto (2023)

Puerto Rico

2.440 million SAN JUAN (capital) (2023)

Qatar

779,000 Ar-Rayyan ; 652,000 DOHA (capital) (2022)

Romania

1.785 million BUCHAREST (capital) (2022)

Russia

12.680 million MOSCOW (capital), 5.561 million Saint Petersburg, 1.695 million Novosibirsk, 1.528 million Yekaterinburg, 1.292 million Kazan, 1.251 million Nizhniy Novgorod (2023)

Rwanda

1.208 million KIGALI (capital) (2022)

Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha

1,000 JAMESTOWN (capital) (2018)

Saint Kitts and Nevis

14,000 BASSETERRE (capital) (2018)

Saint Lucia

22,000 CASTRIES (capital) (2018)

Saint Pierre and Miquelon

6,000 SAINT - PIERRE (capital) (2018)

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

27,000 KINGSTOWN (capital) (2018)

Samoa

36,000 APIA (capital) (2018)

San Marino

4,000 SAN MARINO (2018)

São Tomé and Príncipe

80,000 SÃO TOMÉ (capital) (2018)

Saudi Arabia

7.682 million RIYADH (capital), 4.863 million Jeddah, 2.150 million Mecca, 1.573 million Medina, 1.329 million Ad Dammam, 872,000 million Hufuf-Mubarraz (2023)

Senegal

3.326 million DAKAR (capital) (2022)

Serbia

1.405 million BELGRADE (capital) (2022)

Seychelles

28,000 VICTORIA (capital) (2018)

Sierra Leone

1.272 million FREETOWN (capital) (2022)

Singapore

6.081 million SINGAPORE (capital) (2023)

Sint Maarten

1,327 PHILIPSBURG (capital) (2011)

Slovakia

439,000 BRATISLAVA (capital) (2022)

Slovenia

286,000 LJUBLJANA (capital) (2018)

Solomon Islands

82,000 HONIARA (capital) (2018)

Somalia

2.610 million MOGADISHU (capital), 1.127 million Hargeysa (2023)

South Africa

10.316 million Johannesburg (includes Ekurhuleni), 4.890 million Cape Town (legislative capital), 3.228 million Durban, 2.818 million PRETORIA (administrative capital), 1.296 million Port Elizabeth, 934,000 West Rand (2023)

South Sudan

459,000 JUBA (capital) (2023)

Spain

6.751 million MADRID (capital), 5.687 million Barcelona, 838,000 Valencia (2023)

Sri Lanka

103,000 Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative capital) (2018), 633,000 COLOMBO (capital) (2023)

Sudan

6.344 million KHARTOUM (capital), 1.057 million Nyala (2023)

Suriname

239,000 PARAMARIBO (capital) (2018)

Sweden

1.659 million STOCKHOLM (capital) (2022)

Switzerland

1.420 million Zurich, 437,000 BERN (capital) (2022)

Syria

2.585 million DAMASCUS (capital), 2.203 million Aleppo, 1.443 million Hims (Homs), 996,000 Hamah (2023)

Taiwan

4.504 million New Taipei City, 2.754 million TAIPEI (capital), 2.319 million Taoyuan, 1.553 million Kaohsiung, 1.369 million Taichung, 863,000 Tainan (2023)

Tajikistan

962,000 DUSHANBE (capital) (2022)

Tanzania

262,000 Dodoma (legislative capital) (2018), 7.776 million DAR ES SALAAM (administrative capital), 1.311 million Mwanza, 800,000 Zanzibar (2023)

Thailand

11.070 million BANGKOK (capital), 1.454 Chon Buri, 1.359 million Samut Prakan, 1.213 million Chiang Mai, 1.005 million Songkla, 1.001 million Nothaburi (2023)

Timor-Leste

281,000 DILI (capital) (2018)

Togo

1.926 million LOME (capital) (2022)

Tonga

23,000 NUKU'ALOFA (2018)

Trinidad and Tobago

545,000 PORT OF SPAIN (capital) (2022)

Tunisia

2.439 million TUNIS (capital) (2022)

Turkey (Türkiye)

15.848 million Istanbul, 5.397 million ANKARA (capital), 3.088 million Izmir, 2.086 million Bursa, 1.836 million Adana, 1.805 million Gaziantep (2023)

Turkmenistan

883,000 ASHGABAT (capital) (2022)

Turks and Caicos Islands

5,000 GRAND TURK (capital) (2018)

Tuvalu

7,000 FUNAFUTI (capital) (2018)

Uganda

3.652 million KAMPALA (capital) (2022)

Ukraine

3.010 million KYIV (capital) ; 1.423 million Kharkiv ; 1.008 million Odesa ; 952,000 Dnipro ; 893,000 Donetsk (2022)

United Arab Emirates

2.964 million Dubai ; 1.786 million Sharjah ; 1.540 million ABU DHABI (capital) (2022)

United Kingdom

9.648 million LONDON (capital), 2.791 million Manchester, 2.665 million Birmingham, 1.929 million West Yorkshire, 1.698 million Glasgow, 952,000 Southampton / Portsmouth (2023)

United States

18.937 million New York - Newark, 12.534 million Los Angeles - Long Beach - Santa Ana, 8.937 million Chicago, 6.707 million Houston, 6.574 million Dallas - Fort Worth, 5.490 million WASHINGTON, D.C. (capital) (2023)

Uruguay

1.767 million MONTEVIDEO (capital) (2022)

Uzbekistan

2.574 million TASHKENT (capital) (2022)

Vanuatu

53,000 PORT - VILA (capital) (2018)

Venezuela

2.972 million CARACAS (capital), 2.368 million Maracaibo, 1.983 million Valencia, 1.254 million Barquisimeto, 1.243 million Maracay, 964,000 Ciudad Guayana (2023)

Vietnam

9.321 million Ho Chi Minh City, 5.253 million HANOI (capital), 1.865 million Can Tho, 1.423 million Hai Phong, 1.221 million Da Nang, 1.111 million Bien Hoa (2023)

Virgin Islands

52,000 CHARLOTTE AMALIE (capital) (2018)

Wallis and Futuna

1,000 MATA - UTU (capital) (2018)

Yemen

3.182 million SANAA (capital), 1.045 million Aden (2022)

Zambia

3.042 million LUSAKA (capital) (2022)

Zimbabwe

1.558 million HARARE (capital) (2022)

Very highly urbanized countries

Main article: Urbanization by sovereign state

This is the list of countries where the urbanization rate is at least 80%. Australia, Canada, Japan and the United States are included in the list and are among other very highly urbanized countries.

•   Argentina
•   Australia
•   Brazil
•   Canada
•   Chile
•   France
•   Japan
•   South Korea
•   Mexico
•   Spain
•   United Kingdom
•   United States

Definitions

European countries^[which?] define urbanized areas on the basis of urban-type land use, not allowing any gaps of typically more than 200 metres (220 yd), and use satellite imagery instead of census blocks to determine the boundaries of the urban area. In less-developed countries^[which?], in addition to land use and density requirements, a requirement that a large majority of the population, typically 75%, is not engaged in agriculture and/or fishing is sometimes used.^{[citation needed]}

East Asia

China

Main article: List of cities in China by population and built-up area

Since 2000, China's cities have expanded at an average rate of 10% annually. It is estimated that China's urban population will increase by 292 million people by 2050,^[2] when its cities will house a combined population of over one billion.^[12] The country's urbanization rate increased from 17.4% to 46.6% between 1978 and 2009.^[13] Between 150 and 200 million migrant workers work part-time in the major cities, returning home to the countryside periodically with their earnings.^[14][15]

Today, China has more cities with one million or more long-term residents than any other country, including the three global cities of Beijing, Hong Kong, and Shanghai; by 2025, the country will be home to 221 cities with over a million inhabitants.^[12] The figures in the table below are from the 2008 census, and are only estimates of the urban populations within administrative city limits; a different ranking exists when considering the total municipal populations (which includes suburban and rural populations). The large "floating populations" of migrant workers make conducting censuses in urban areas difficult;^[16] the figures below include only long-term residents.

 

Panoramic view of Pudong's Skyline from the Bund in Shanghai.

v t e Largest cities or municipalities in the People's Republic of China China Urban Construction Statistical Yearbook 2020 Urban Population and Urban Temporary Population ^[17]^[note 1]^[note 2]
	Rank	Name	Province	Pop.	Rank	Name	Province	Pop.
Shanghai   Beijing	1	Shanghai	SH	24,281,400	11	Hong Kong	HK	7,448,900	Guangzhou   Shenzhen
	2	Beijing	BJ	19,164,000	12	Zhengzhou	HA	7,179,400
	3	Guangzhou	GD	13,858,700	13	Nanjing	JS	6,823,500
	4	Shenzhen	GD	13,438,800	14	Xi'an	SN	6,642,100
	5	Tianjin	TJ	11,744,400	15	Jinan	SD	6,409,600
	6	Chongqing	CQ	11,488,000	16	Shenyang	LN	5,900,000
	7	Dongguan	GD	9,752,500	17	Qingdao	SD	5,501,400
	8	Chengdu	SC	8,875,600	18	Harbin	HL	5,054,500
	9	Wuhan	HB	8,652,900	19	Hefei	AH	4,750,100
	10	Hangzhou	ZJ	8,109,000	20	Changchun	JL	4,730,900

1. Population of Hong Kong as of 2018 estimate.^[18]
2. The data of Chongqing in the list is the data of "Metropolitan Developed Economic Area", which contains two parts: "City Proper" and "Metropolitan Area". The "City proper" are consist of 9 districts: Yuzhong, Dadukou, Jiangbei, Shapingba, Jiulongpo, Nan'an, Beibei, Yubei, & Banan, has the urban population of 5,646,300 as of 2018. And the "Metropolitan Area" are consist of 12 districts: Fuling, Changshou, Jiangjin, Hechuan, Yongchuan, Nanchuan, Qijiang, Dazu, Bishan, Tongliang, Tongnan, & Rongchang, has the urban population of 5,841,700.^[19] Total urban population of all 26 districts of Chongqing are up to 15,076,600.

Japan

In Japan, urbanized areas are defined as contiguous areas of densely inhabited districts (DIDs) using census enumeration districts as units with a density requirement of 4,000 inhabitants per square kilometre (10,000/sq mi).

South Korea

Seoul is the largest urban area in South Korea.

South Asia

India

Main articles: Urbanisation in India and List of cities in India by population

For the Census of India 2011, the definition of urban area is a place having a minimum population of 5,000 of density 400 persons per square kilometre (1,000/sq mi) or higher, and 75% plus of the male working population employed in non-agricultural activities. Places administered by a municipal corporation, cantonment board or notified town area committee are automatically considered urban areas.^[20]

The Census of India 2011 also defined the term "urban agglomeration" as an integrated urban area consisting of a core town together with its "outgrowths" (contiguous suburbs).^[21]

 

India gate panorama.

Largest urban agglomerations in India by population v t e (2011 census)^[22]^[23]
Mumbai   Delhi   Kolkata   Chennai   Bangalore   Hyderabad	Rank	City Name	State/Territory	Population	Rank	City Name	State/Territory	Population	Ahmedabad   Pune   Surat   Jaipur   Kanpur   Lucknow
	1	Mumbai	Maharashtra	18,394,912	28	Ludhiana	Punjab	1,618,879
	2	Delhi	Delhi	16,349,831	29	Nashik	Maharashtra	1,562,769
	3	Kolkata	West Bengal	14,112,536	30	Vijayawada	Andhra Pradesh	1,491,202
	4	Chennai	Tamil Nadu	8,696,010	31	Madurai	Tamil Nadu	1,465,625
	5	Bengaluru	Karnataka	8,520,435	32	Varanasi	Uttar Pradesh	1,435,113
	6	Hyderabad	Telangana	7,749,334	33	Meerut	Uttar Pradesh	1,424,908
	7	Ahmedabad	Gujarat	6,361,084	34	Faridabad	Haryana	1,414,050
	8	Pune	Maharashtra	5,057,709	35	Rajkot	Gujarat	1,390,933
	9	Surat	Gujarat	4,591,246	36	Jamshedpur	Jharkhand	1,339,438
	10	Jaipur	Rajasthan	3,073,350	37	Srinagar	Jammu and Kashmir	1,273,312
	11	Kanpur	Uttar Pradesh	2,920,496	38	Jabalpur	Madhya Pradesh	1,268,848
	12	Lucknow	Uttar Pradesh	2,902,920	39	Asansol	West Bengal	1,243,414
	13	Nagpur	Maharashtra	2,497,870	40	Vasai-Virar	Maharashtra	1,222,390
	14	Ghaziabad	Uttar Pradesh	2,375,820	41	Allahabad	Uttar Pradesh	1,216,719
	15	Indore	Madhya Pradesh	2,170,295	42	Dhanbad	Jharkhand	1,196,214
	16	Coimbatore	Tamil Nadu	2,151,466	43	Aurangabad	Maharashtra	1,193,167
	17	Kochi	Kerala	2,119,724	44	Amritsar	Punjab	1,183,705
	18	Patna	Bihar	2,049,156	45	Jodhpur	Rajasthan	1,138,300
	19	Kozhikode	Kerala	2,030,519	46	Ranchi	Jharkhand	1,126,741
	20	Bhopal	Madhya Pradesh	1,886,100	47	Raipur	Chhattisgarh	1,123,558
	21	Thrissur	Kerala	1,861,269	48	Kollam	Kerala	1,110,668
	22	Vadodara	Gujarat	1,822,221	49	Gwalior	Madhya Pradesh	1,102,884
	23	Agra	Uttar Pradesh	1,760,285	50	Bhilai	Chhattisgarh	1,064,222
	24	Visakhapatnam	Andhra Pradesh	1,730,320	51	Chandigarh	Chandigarh	1,026,459
	25	Malappuram	Kerala	1,699,060	52	Tiruchirappalli	Tamil Nadu	1,022,518
	26	Thiruvananthapuram	Kerala	1,687,406	53	Kota	Rajasthan	1,001,694
	27	Kannur	Kerala	1,642,892	54	Mysore	Karnataka	990,900

Pakistan

Main articles: Urbanisation in Pakistan and List of most populous cities in Pakistan

In Pakistan, an area is a major city and municipality if it has more than 100,000 inhabitants according to census results. Cities include adjacent cantonments. Urbanisation in Pakistan has increased since the time of independence and has several different causes. The majority of southern Pakistan's population lives along the Indus River. Karachi is its most populous city.^[24] In the northern half of the country, most of the population lives in an arc formed by the cities of Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Gujrat, Jhelum, Sargodha, Sheikhupura, Nowshera, Mardan and Peshawar. During 1990–2008, city dwellers made up 36% of Pakistan's population, making it the most urbanised nation in South Asia. Furthermore, 50% of Pakistanis live in towns of 5,000 people or more.^[25] Karachi is the most populated city in Pakistan closely followed by Lahore according to the 2017 Census.

Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, there are total 532 urban areas, which are divided into three categories. Those are City Corporation, Municipal Corporation (Pourasova) and Upazila town. Among those urban areas, Dhaka is the largest city by population and area, with a population of 19.10 million.^[26] In Bangladesh, there are total 11 City Corporations and 329 Municipal Corporations and 203 Small towns, which serves as the center for Upazilas. According to 2011 population census, Bangladesh has an urban population of 28%, with a growth rate of 2.8%.^[27] At this growth rate, it is estimated that the urban population of Bangladesh will reach 79 million or 42% of total population by 2035.

Southeast Asia

v t e Largest cities in ASEAN
	Rank	Name	Country	Pop.	Rank	Name	Country	Pop.
Jakarta   Manila	1	Jakarta	Indonesia	34,540,000	11	Medan	Indonesia	3,632,000	Bangkok   Ho Chi Minh City
	2	Manila	Philippines	23,088,000	12	Cebu City	Philippines	2,275,000
	3	Bangkok	Thailand	17,066,000	13	Phnom Penh	Cambodia	2,177,000
	4	Ho Chi Minh City	Vietnam	13,312,000	14	Semarang	Indonesia	1,992,000
	5	Kuala Lumpur	Malaysia	8,285,000	15	Johor Bahru	Malaysia	1,981,000
	6	Bandung	Indonesia	7,065,000	16	Makassar	Indonesia	1,952,000
	7	Hanoi	Vietnam	6,576,000	17	Palembang	Indonesia	1,889,000
	8	Surabaya	Indonesia	6,499,000	18	Mandalay	Myanmar	1,633,000
	9	Yangon	Myanmar	6,314,000	19	Hai Phong	Vietnam	1,623,000
	10	Singapore	Singapore	5,745,000	20	Yogyakarta	Indonesia	1,568,000

Philippines

With an estimated population of 16.3 million, Metro Manila is the most populous metropolitan area in the Philippines and the 11th in the world. However, the greater urban area is the 5th largest in the world with a population of 20,654,307 people (2010 estimate).^[28]

Singapore

Further information: Geography of Singapore and Planning Areas of Singapore

As an island city-state, about 5.6 million people live and work within 700 square kilometres (270 sq mi). With 64 islands and islets, Singapore Island makes up the largest urban area in the country. According to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, the country has the highest urbanised population in Southeast Asia, with 100 percent of its population living in an urban area.^[29] The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is responsible for the urban land-use planning, which designates land use and urban density of the country.^[30] The country is divided into 5 regions for planning purposes by the URA, even though as a city state Singapore is defined as a single continuous urban area. It is further subdivided into 55 urban planning areas, which acts as the boundaries of planned towns within the country.^[31]

Vietnam

In Vietnam, there are 6 types of urban areas:

• Special urban area (2 municipalities): Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
• Type I urban area (18 provincial cities and 3 municipalities): Long Xuyên, Pleiku, Mỹ Tho, Thủ Dầu Một, Bắc Ninh, Biên Hòa, Hải Dương, Thanh Hóa, Hạ Long, Việt Trì, Thái Nguyên, Nam Định, Vũng Tàu, Buôn Ma Thuột, Đà Lạt, Quy Nhơn, Nha Trang, Huế, Vinh, Cần Thơ, Đà Nẵng and Hải Phòng.
• Type II urban area (21 provincial cities and 1 district):Châu Đốc, Đồng Hới, Uông Bí, Bắc Giang, Ninh Bình, Bạc Liêu, Bà Rịa, Thái Bình, Rạch Giá, Cà Mau, Phan Rang–Tháp Chàm, Tuy Hòa, Phan Thiết, Vĩnh Yên, Lào Cai and Phú Quốc.
• Type III urban area (31 provincial cities and 12 towns).
• Type IV urban area (35 towns and 35 townships).
• Type V urban area (586 townships and 54 communes).

Thailand

Bangkok is the largest urban area in Thailand.

Europe

Finland

Main articles: Urban areas in Finland and List of urban areas in Finland by population

 

A street sign indicating the beginning of an urban area in Finland. The picture was taken in Vimpeli.

As in other Nordic countries, an urban area (taajama in Finnish) in Finland must have a building at least every 200 m (660 ft) and at least 200 people. To be considered a town or a city (kaupunki) for statistical purposes, an urban area must have at least 15,000 people. This is not to be confused with the city / town designation used by municipalities.^[32][33]

France

Main article: Functional area (France)

In France, an urban area (Fr: aire d'attraction d'une ville) is a zone encompassing an area of built-up growth (called an "urban unit" (unité urbaine)^[34] – close in definition to the North American urban area) and its commuter belt (couronne). Americans would find the INSEE definition of the urban area^[35] to be similar to their metropolitan area.

The largest cities in France, in terms of urban area population (2017), are Paris (12,628,266), Lyon (2,323,221), Marseille (1,760,653), Toulouse (1,360,829), Bordeaux (1,247,977), Lille (1,191,117), Nice (1,006,201), Nantes (972,828), Strasbourg (790,087) and Rennes (733,320).^[36]

 

Panorama of Paris as seen from the Eiffel Tower as full 360-degree view (river flowing from north-east to south-west, right to left)

Germany

Germany has a number of large cities. The largest conurbation is the Rhine-Ruhr region (11 million in 2008^[update]), including Düsseldorf (the capital of North Rhine-Westphalia), Cologne, Bonn, Dortmund, Essen, Duisburg, and Bochum.^[37]

v t e Largest urban agglomerations in Germany Federal Statistical Office of Germany (31 December 2017)
	Rank	Name	State	Pop.	Rank	Name	State	Pop.
Rhine-Ruhr   Berlin	1	Rhine-Ruhr	North Rhine-Westphalia	11,108,117	11	Chemnitz	Saxony	873,745	Rhine-Main   Stuttgart
	2	Berlin	Berlin	4,544,525	12	Hanover	Lower Saxony	796,298
	3	Rhine-Main	Hesse	3,146,343	13	Dresden	Saxony	790,534
	4	Stuttgart	Baden-Württemberg	3,016,208	14	Saar	Saarland	758,249
	5	Munich	Bavaria	2,374,272	15	Bremen	Bremen	664,603
	6	Hamburg	Hamburg	2,342,356	16	Aachen	North Rhine-Westphalia	655,276
	7	Rhine-Neckar	Baden-Württemberg	1,410,711	17	Karlsruhe	Baden-Württemberg	611,319
	8	Nuremberg	Bavaria	1,228,597	18	Augsburg	Bavaria	543,503
	9	Leipzig	Saxony	1,038,996	19	Freiburg im Breisgau	Baden-Württemberg	332,013
	10	Bielefeld	North Rhine-Westphalia	929,005	20	Kassel	Hesse	330,654

Netherlands

The Netherlands is the 30th most densely populated country in the world, with 404.6 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,048/sq mi)—or 497 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,287/sq mi) if only the land area is counted. The Randstad is the country's largest conurbation located in the west of the country and contains the four largest cities: Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, and Utrecht. The Randstad has a population of 7 million inhabitants and is the 6th largest metropolitan area in Europe.

Sweden

Main article: List of urban areas in Sweden by population

Urban areas in Sweden (tätorter) are statistically defined localities, totally independent of the administrative subdivision of the country. There are 1,956 such localities in Sweden, with a population ranging from 200 to 1,372,000 inhabitants.^[38]

United Kingdom

Main article: List of urban areas in the United Kingdom

In 2013 the United Kingdom's Office for National Statistics (ONS) published 2011 Built-up Areas - Methodology and Guidance which sets out its definition of a built-up area as an area of built-up land of at least 20 hectares (0.077 sq mi), separated from other settlements by at least 200 metres (660 ft). For 2011 census data there are 5,493 built-up areas, of which 501 are divided into sub-divisions for which data is also available. Each built-up area is named algorithmically, using Ordnance Survey place-name data.^[39]

The ONS has produced census results from urban areas since 1951, since 1981 based upon the extent of irreversible urban development indicated on Ordnance Survey maps. The definition is an extent of at least 20 ha and at least 1,500 census residents. Separate areas are linked if less than 200 m (220 yd) apart. Included are transportation features.^[40] The UK has five Urban Areas with a population over a million and a further sixty nine with a population over one hundred thousand.

v t e Largest urban areas of the United Kingdom (England and Wales: 2011 census built-up area;^[41] Scotland: 2016 estimates settlement;^[42] Northern Ireland: 2001 census urban area)^[43]
	Rank	Urban area	Pop.	Principal settlement	Rank	Urban area	Pop.	Principal settlement
Greater London   West Midlands	1	Greater London	9,787,426	London	11	Bristol	617,280	Bristol
	2	West Midlands	2,440,986	Birmingham	12	Edinburgh	512,150	Edinburgh
	3	Greater Manchester	2,553,379	Manchester	13	Leicester	508,916	Leicester
	4	West Yorkshire	1,777,934	Leeds	14	Belfast	483,418	Belfast
	5	Greater Glasgow	985,290	Glasgow	15	Brighton & Hove	474,485	Brighton & Hove
	6	Liverpool	864,122	Liverpool	16	Bournemouth/ Poole	466,266	Bournemouth
	7	South Hampshire	855,569	Southampton	17	Cardiff	390,214	Cardiff
	8	Tyneside	774,891	Newcastle	18	Teesside	376,633	Middlesbrough
	9	Nottingham	729,977	Nottingham	19	Stoke-on-Trent	372,775	Stoke
	10	Sheffield	685,368	Sheffield	20	Coventry	359,262	Coventry

Norway

Main article: List of urban areas in Norway by population

Statistics Norway defines urban areas ("tettsteder") similarly to the other Nordic countries. Unlike in Denmark and Sweden, the distance between each building has to be of less than 50 m, although exceptions are made due to parks, industrial areas, rivers, and similar. Groups of houses less than 400 m from the main body of an urban area are included in the urban area.^[44]

Poland

In Poland, official "urban" population figures simply refer to those localities which have the status of towns (miasta). The "rural" population is that of all areas outside the boundaries of these towns. This distinction may give a misleading impression in some cases, since some localities with only village status may have acquired larger and denser populations than many many smaller towns^[45] with most excessive example of Poznań, most spread urban area of the country with population of the city app. 534 thousand and urban area above 1,100 thousand inhabitants. On the other hand, the Upper Silesian Industrial Region conurbation with numerous large and medium cities covers 3,200 km and has approximately 3 million people.

Russia

Moscow, the capital and largest city of Russia, has a population estimated at 12.4 million residents within the city limits,^[46] while over 17 million residents in the urban area,^[47] and over 20 million residents in the Moscow Metropolitan Area.^[48] It is among the world's largest cities, being the most populous city entirely within Europe, the most populous urban area in Europe,^[47] the most populous metropolitan area in Europe,^[48] and also the largest city by land area on the European continent.^[49] Saint Petersburg, the cultural capital, is the second-largest city, with a population of roughly 5.4 million inhabitants.^[50] Other major urban areas are Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, and Chelyabinsk.

•  

  Moscow, the capital and largest city of Russia

•  

  Saint Petersburg, the cultural capital and the second-largest city

•  

  Novosibirsk, the largest city in Siberia and the third-largest city

•  

  Yekaterinburg, the fourth-largest city in the country.

v t e Largest cities or towns in Russia 2021 Census^[51]
	Rank	Name	Federal subject	Pop.	Rank	Name	Federal subject	Pop.
Moscow   Saint Petersburg	1	Moscow	Moscow	13,010,112	11	Rostov-na-Donu	Rostov Oblast	1,142,162	Novosibirsk   Yekaterinburg
	2	Saint Petersburg	Saint Petersburg	5,601,911	12	Omsk	Omsk Oblast	1,125,695
	3	Novosibirsk	Novosibirsk Oblast	1,633,595	13	Krasnodar	Krasnodar Krai	1,099,344
	4	Yekaterinburg	Sverdlovsk Oblast	1,544,376	14	Voronezh	Voronezh Oblast	1,057,681
	5	Kazan	Tatarstan	1,308,660	15	Perm	Perm Krai	1,034,002
	6	Nizhny Novgorod	Nizhny Novgorod Oblast	1,228,199	16	Volgograd	Volgograd Oblast	1,028,036
	7	Chelyabinsk	Chelyabinsk Oblast	1,189,525	17	Saratov	Saratov Oblast	901,361
	8	Krasnoyarsk	Krasnoyarsk Krai	1,187,771	18	Tyumen	Tyumen Oblast	847,488
	9	Samara	Samara Oblast	1,173,299	19	Tolyatti	Samara Oblast	684,709
	10	Ufa	Bashkortostan	1,144,809	20	Barnaul	Altai Krai	630,877

Oceania

Australia

The Australian Bureau of Statistics refers to urban areas as Urban Centres, which it generally defines as population clusters of 1,000 or more people.^[52] Australia is one of the most urbanised countries in the world, with more than 50% of the population residing in Australia's three biggest urban centres.^{[citation needed][52]}

 

Sydney is Australia's largest city, home to 5.3 million inhabitants.^[53]

New Zealand

Main article: Urban areas of New Zealand

Statistics New Zealand defines urban areas in New Zealand, which are independent of any administrative subdivisions and have no legal basis.^[54] There are four classes of urban area: major urban areas (population 100,000+), large urban areas (population 30,000-99,999), medium urban areas (population 10,000-29,999) and small urban areas (population 1000-9,999). As of 2021, there are 7 major urban areas, 13 large urban areas, 22 medium urban areas and 136 small urban areas. Urban areas are reclassified after each New Zealand census, so population changes between censuses does not change an urban area's classification.

v t e Largest cities or towns in New Zealand Statistics New Zealand June 2022 estimate (SSGA18 boundaries)^[55]
	Rank	Name	Region	Pop.	Rank	Name	Region	Pop.
Auckland   Christchurch	1	Auckland	Auckland	1,440,300	11	Hibiscus Coast	Auckland	60,000	Wellington   Hamilton
	2	Christchurch	Canterbury	377,900	12	New Plymouth	Taranaki	58,500
	3	Wellington	Wellington	212,000	13	Rotorua	Bay of Plenty	57,900
	4	Hamilton	Waikato	179,900	14	Whangārei	Northland	54,900
	5	Tauranga	Bay of Plenty	158,300	15	Nelson	Nelson	50,800
	6	Lower Hutt	Wellington	111,500	16	Hastings	Hawke's Bay	50,400
	7	Dunedin	Otago	102,400	17	Invercargill	Southland	49,800
	8	Palmerston North	Manawatū-Whanganui	81,200	18	Upper Hutt	Wellington	44,800
	9	Napier	Hawke's Bay	66,800	19	Whanganui	Manawatū-Whanganui	42,600
	10	Porirua	Wellington	60,200	20	Gisborne	Gisborne	37,700

North America

Canada

Main article: List of the largest population centres in Canada

According to Statistics Canada, an urban area in Canada is an area with a population of at least 1,000 people where the density is no fewer than 400 persons per square kilometre (1,000/sq mi).^[56] If two or more urban areas are within 2 km (1.2 mi) of each other by road, they are merged into a single urban area, provided they do not cross census metropolitan area or census agglomeration boundaries.^[57]

In the Canada 2011 Census, Statistics Canada redesignated urban areas with the new term "population centre";^[58] the new term was chosen in order to better reflect the fact that urban vs. rural is not a strict division, but rather a continuum within which several distinct settlement patterns may exist. For example, a community may fit a strictly statistical definition of an urban area, but may not be commonly thought of as "urban" because it has a smaller population, or functions socially and economically as a suburb of another urban area rather than as a self-contained urban entity, or is geographically remote from other urban communities. Accordingly, the new definition set out three distinct types of population centres: small (population 1,000 to 29,999), medium (population 30,000 to 99,999) and large (population 100,000 or greater).^[58] Despite the change in terminology, however, the demographic definition of a population centre remains unchanged from that of an urban area: a population of at least 1,000 people where the density is no fewer than 400 persons per km².

v t e Largest metropolitan areas in Canada 2021 Canadian census
Rank	Name	Province	Pop.	Rank	Name	Province	Pop.
1	Toronto	Ontario	6,202,225	11	London	Ontario	543,551
2	Montreal	Quebec	4,291,732	12	Halifax	Nova Scotia	465,703
3	Vancouver	British Columbia	2,642,825	13	St. Catharines–Niagara	Ontario	433,604
4	Ottawa–Gatineau	Ontario–Quebec	1,488,307	14	Windsor	Ontario	422,630
5	Calgary	Alberta	1,481,806	15	Oshawa	Ontario	415,311
6	Edmonton	Alberta	1,418,118	16	Victoria	British Columbia	397,237
7	Quebec City	Quebec	839,311	17	Saskatoon	Saskatchewan	317,480
8	Winnipeg	Manitoba	834,678	18	Regina	Saskatchewan	249,217
9	Hamilton	Ontario	785,184	19	Sherbrooke	Quebec	227,398
10	Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo	Ontario	575,847	20	Kelowna	British Columbia	222,162

Mexico

Mexico is one of many countries where the urbanization rate is at least 80%. Mexico City, its capital, is the largest urban area in the country.

United States

Main article: List of United States urban areas

In the United States, there are two categories of urban area. The term urbanized area denotes an urban area of 50,000 or more people. Urban areas under 50,000 people are called urban clusters. Urbanized areas were first delineated in the United States in the 1950 census, while urban clusters were added in the 2000 census. There are 1,371 urban areas and urban clusters with more than 10,000 people.

The U.S. Census Bureau defines an urban area as "core census block groups or blocks that have a population density of at least 1,000 people per square mile (386 per square kilometer) and surrounding census blocks that have an overall density of at least 500 people per square mile (193 per square kilometer)".^[59]

The largest urban area in the United States is the New York metropolitan area. The population of New York City, the core of the metropolitan area, exceeds 8.8 million people, its metropolitan statistical area has a population that is over 20 million, and its combined statistical area population is over 23 million. The next seven largest urban areas in the U.S. are Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Houston, and Atlanta.^[60] About 82 percent of the population of the United States lives within the boundaries of an urbanized area as of December, 2010.^[61] Combined, these areas occupy about 2 percent of the land area of the United States. Many Americans live in agglomerations of cities, suburbs, and towns that are adjacent to a metropolitan area's largest city.^{[citation needed]}

 

The skyscrapers of New York City, the most populous city in the United States and the most populous U.S. metropolitan area, are almost all situated in Manhattan, the world's largest central business district, seen here in this panorama in February 2018, as viewed from Weehawken, New Jersey.

1. Riverside Church
2. Time Warner Center
3. 220 Central Park South
4. Central Park Tower
5. One57
6. 432 Park Avenue
7. 53W53
8. Chrysler Building
9. Bank of America Tower
10. Conde Nast Building
11. The New York Times Building
12. Empire State Building
13. Manhattan West
14. a: 55 Hudson Yards, b: 35 Hudson Yards, c: 10 Hudson Yards, d: 15 Hudson Yards
15. 56 Leonard Street
16. 8 Spruce Street
17. Woolworth Building
18. 70 Pine Street
19. 30 Park Place
20. 40 Wall Street
21. Three World Trade Center
22. Four World Trade Center
23. One World Trade Center

The concept of Urbanized Areas as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau is often used as a more accurate gauge of the size of a city, since in different cities and states the lines between city borders and the urbanized area of that city are often not the same. For example, the city of Greenville, South Carolina has a city population just over 68,000 and an urbanized area population of around 400,000, while Greensboro, North Carolina has a city population just over 285,000 and an urbanized area population of around 300,000 — meaning that Greenville is actually "larger" for some intents and purposes, but not for others, such as taxation, local elections, etc.

In the U.S. Department of Agriculture's natural resources inventory, urban areas are officially known as developed areas or urban and built-up areas. Such areas include cities, ethnic villages, other built-up areas of more than 10 ac (4 ha), industrial sites, railroad yards, cemeteries, airports, golf courses, shooting ranges, institutional and public administration sites, and similar areas. The 1997 national resources inventory placed over 98,000,000 ac (40,000,000 ha) in this category, an increase of 25,000,000 ac (10,000,000 ha) since 1982.^[62]

v t e Largest metropolitan areas in United States 2021 MSA population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau
	Rank		Region	Pop.	Rank		Region	Pop.
New York   Los Angeles	1	New York	Northeast	19,768,458	11	Boston	Northeast	4,899,932
	2	Los Angeles	West	12,997,353	12	Riverside–San Bernardino	West	4,653,105
	3	Chicago	Midwest	9,509,934	13	San Francisco	West	4,623,264
	4	Dallas–Fort Worth	South	7,759,615	14	Detroit	Midwest	4,365,205
	5	Houston	South	7,206,841	15	Seattle	West	4,011,553
	6	Washington, D.C.	South	6,356,434	16	Minneapolis–Saint Paul	Midwest	3,690,512
	7	Philadelphia	Northeast	6,228,601	17	San Diego	West	3,286,069
	8	Atlanta	South	6,144,050	18	Tampa–St. Petersburg	South	3,219,514
	9	Miami	South	6,091,747	19	Denver	West	2,972,566
	10	Phoenix	West	4,946,145	20	Baltimore	South	2,838,327

South America

Argentina

Argentina is highly urbanized.^[63] The ten largest metropolitan areas account for half of the population, and fewer than one in ten live in rural areas. About 3 million people live in Buenos Aires City and the Greater Buenos Aires metropolitan area totals around 15 million, making it one of the largest urban areas in the world, with a population of 18 million all up.^[64]

Córdoba has around 1.5 million people living in the urban area, while Rosario, Mendoza and Tucumán have around 1.2 million inhabitants each^[64] and La Plata, Mar del Plata, Salta and Santa Fe^[64][65] have at least 500,000 people each.

Brazil

The following paragraph is an excerpt from List of metropolitan areas in Brazil § Definitions.[edit]

In Brazil, the terms metropolitan area (Portuguese: região metropolitana) and urban agglomeration (aglomeração urbana) have specific meanings. They are defined by federal and state legislation as collections of municipalities focused on "integrating the organization, planning and execution of public functions of common interest".^[66] An integrated development area (região integrada de desenvolvimento) is one of the two above structures that crosses state (or Federal District) boundaries.

v t e Largest urban agglomerations in Brazil 2017 Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics estimates^[67]^[68]^[69]
	Rank	Name	State	Pop.	Rank	Name	State	Pop.
São Paulo   Rio de Janeiro	1	São Paulo	São Paulo	21,314,716	11	Belém	Pará	2,157,180	Belo Horizonte   Recife
	2	Rio de Janeiro	Rio de Janeiro	12,389,775	12	Manaus	Amazonas	2,130,264
	3	Belo Horizonte	Minas Gerais	5,142,260	13	Campinas	São Paulo	2,105,600
	4	Recife	Pernambuco	4,021,641	14	Vitória	Espírito Santo	1,837,047
	5	Brasília	Federal District	3,986,425	15	Baixada Santista	São Paulo	1,702,343
	6	Porto Alegre	Rio Grande do Sul	3,894,232	16	São José dos Campos	São Paulo	1,572,943
	7	Salvador	Bahia	3,863,154	17	São Luís	Maranhão	1,421,569
	8	Fortaleza	Ceará	3,594,924	18	Natal	Rio Grande do Norte	1,349,743
	9	Curitiba	Paraná	3,387,985	19	Maceió	Alagoas	1,231,965
	10	Goiânia	Goiás	2,347,557	20	João Pessoa	Paraíba	1,168,941

Chile

Chile is highly urbanized, just like Argentina. The largest urban area in the country is its capital, Santiago.

See also

• Developed environments
• Urban climatology
• Urban culture
• Urban decay
• Urban exploration
• Urban planning
• Urban renewal
• Urbanization
• Urban vitality

References

1. Baten, Joerg (2003). "Creating Firms for a New Century: Determinants of Firm Creation around 1900". European Review of Economic History. 7 (3): 301–329. doi:10.1017/S136149160300011X. hdl:10419/76463. S2CID 51520898 – via EBSCO.
2. . Herald Globe. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
3. "United Nations Population Division – Department of Economic and Social Affairs".
4. . World Health Organization. Archived from the original on March 8, 2012.
5. . United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Archived from the original on 2 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
6. "Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change". www.ipcc.ch. Retrieved 2022-04-04.
7. Dijkstra, Lewis; Poelman, Hugo (2014). "A harmonised definition of cities and rural areas: the new degree of urbanisation" (PDF). Regional Working Paper. Europa Commission. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
8. "2011 Census: Characteristics of Built-Up Areas (4. Introduction)". Office for National Statistics. 28 June 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
9. "Urban land area (km²)". Our World in Data. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
10. "CIA The World Factbook - Major urban areas: population".
11. "Australian Bureau of Statistics".
12. . McKinsey Global Institute. February 2009. Archived from the original on 24 December 2012. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
13. (PDF). World Bank Institute. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 January 2013. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
14. Harney, Alexandra (3 February 2008). "Migrants are China's 'factories without smoke'". CNN. Retrieved 27 March 2009.
15. Tschang, Chi-Chu (4 February 2009). "A Tough New Year for China's Migrant Workers". Business Week. Retrieved 27 March 2009.
16. Francesco Sisci. "China's floating population a headache for census". The Straits Times. 22 September 2000.
17. Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of the People's Republic of China(MOHURD) (2021). 中国城市建设统计年鉴2020 [China Urban Construction Statistical Yearbook 2018] (in Chinese). Beijing: China Statistic Publishing House.
18. August 2018 (PDF). Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics (Report). Census and Statistics Department. August 2018. p. 4.
19. Chongqing Statistics Bureau (2019). 重庆统计年鉴2019 [Chongqing Statistical Yearbook 2019] (in Chinese). Beijing: China Statistic Publishing House. p. 613. ISBN 978-7-5037-8854-3.
20. "Provisional Population Totals Urban Agglomerations and Cities, Data Highlights" (PDF). Census of India 2011. 13 February 2012.
21. "Urban Agglomeration". Arthapedia. India Economic Service. 10 April 2015.
22. "Table 3: Urban agglomerations having population 1 Lakh and above" (PDF). Provisional Population Totals. Government of India. Retrieved 2011-10-19.
23. "Agglomerations & Cities". INDIA: States and Major Agglomerations Population Totals. Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
24. "The Urban Frontier—Karachi". NPR. National Public Radio. 2 June 2008. Retrieved 2 July 2008.
25. Jason Burke (17 August 2008). "Pakistan looks to life without the general". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
26. "Bangladesh Population & Housing Census-2011" (PDF). Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics. March 2014. (PDF) from the original on 8 December 2015.
27. Population and Housing Census 2011 - Volume 3: Urban Area Report (PDF), Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, Aug 2014
28. . World Gazetteer. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2010-01-22.
29. "The State of Asian and Pacific Cities 2015" (PDF). United Nations ESCAP. 2015. Retrieved August 18, 2021.
30. "Singapore Urban Redevelopment Authority". URA (Singapore). Retrieved August 18, 2021.
31. . Archived from the original on 2007-06-12. Retrieved 2007-06-02.
32. "Locality – Concepts". Statistics Finland.
33. "Alueluokkien kuvaukset". Ymparisto.
34. "Urban unit". Definitions, methods and quality. INSEE. October 31, 2016. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
35. "Urban area". Definitions, methods and quality. INSEE. October 31, 2016. Retrieved 2019-01-18.
36. "Tableaux de l'économie française, Édition 2020, Villes et communes de France". INSEE. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
37. "Verdichtungsräume nach Fläche, Bevölkerung und Bevölkerungsdichte am 31.12.2017, im November 2018 wegen korrigierter Bevölkerung revidiert" (in German). Statistisches Bundesamt. 2017. p. 10. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
38. . Statistics Sweden. Archived from the original on 2012-01-12. Retrieved 2011-06-24.
39. "2011 Built-up Areas - Methodology and Guidance" (PDF). Office for National Statistics. 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
40. KS01 Usual resident population: Census 2001, Key Statistics for urban areas
    For the OS definition of an Urban Area, see the notes tab on the Excel version.
41. "2011 Census - Built-up areas". ONS. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
42. "NRS – Background Information Settlements and Localities" (PDF). National Records of Scotland. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
43. The UK's major urban areas Office for National Statistics (Urban area of Belfast and connected settlements, Table 3.1, page 47)
44. "Population statistics. Population and land area in urban settlements, 1 January 2008". Statistics Norway. June 20, 2008. Retrieved 2009-04-17.
45. "Polish official population figures".
46. "RUSSIA: Central'nyj Federal'nyj Okrug – Central Federal District". City Population.de. August 8, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2020.
47. "Demographia World Urban Areas" (PDF). Demographia. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
48. Alexander Akishin (August 17, 2017). "A 3-Hour Commute: A Close Look At Moscow The Megapolis". Strelka Mag. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
49. "Moscow, a City Undergoing Transformation". Planète Énergies. September 11, 2017. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
50. "RUSSIA: Severo-Zapadnyj Federal'nyj Okrug: Northwestern Federal District". City Population.de. 8 August 2020. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
51. "Оценка численности постоянного населения по субъектам Российской Федерации". Federal State Statistics Service. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
52. "Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS)". 23 May 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
53. . Australian Bureau of Statistics. 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
54. . Statistics New Zealand. Archived from the original on 13 November 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
55. "Subnational population estimates (RC, SA2), by age and sex, at 30 June 1996-2022 (2022 boundaries)". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 25 October 2022. (regional councils); "Subnational population estimates (TA, SA2), by age and sex, at 30 June 1996-2022 (2022 boundaries)". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 25 October 2022. (territorial authorities); "Subnational population estimates (urban rural), by age and sex, at 30 June 1996-2022 (2022 boundaries)". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 25 October 2022. (urban areas)
56. "Urban area (UA)". Statistics Canada. 2009-11-20. Retrieved 2011-01-21.
57. "More information on Urban area (UA)". Statistics Canada. 2009-11-20. Retrieved 2011-01-21.
58. "From urban areas to population centres" 2012-12-13 at the Wayback Machine. Statistics Canada, May 5, 2011.
59. "The Urban and Rural Classifications" (PDF). Geographic Areas Reference Manual. United States Census Bureau.
60. United States Census Bureau 2010 Census Urban Area List . Archived from the original on 2012-10-10. Retrieved 2013-05-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) 2010 Census Urban Area List. Retrieved May 7, 2013.
61. [1] – accessed January, 2012
62.   This article incorporates public domain material from Jasper Womach. Report for Congress: Agriculture: A Glossary of Terms, Programs, and Laws, 2005 Edition (PDF). Congressional Research Service.
63. . The World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on July 25, 2009.
64. "Major Cities". Government of Argentina. from the original on 19 September 2009.
65. (in Spanish). Directorate-General of Tourism, Municipality of the City of Salta. Archived from the original on 2010-01-17.
66. "Metropolitan Areas, Urban Agglomerations and Integrated Development Areas | IBGE". www.ibge.gov.br. from the original on 2021-01-02. Retrieved 2021-04-02.
67. "Mais da metade da população vive em 294 arranjos formados por contiguidade urbana e por deslocamentos para trabalho e estudo" (in Portuguese). Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. Retrieved 16 March 2017.
68. "Arranjos Populacionais e Concentrações Urbanas do Brasil" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. p. 148. Retrieved 16 March 2017.
69. "Estimativas da população residente no Brasil e Unidades da Federação com data de referência em 1º de julho de 2017" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. Retrieved 14 May 2018.

External links

• United Nations Statistics Division (UNSTAT): Definition of "urban"
• World Urban Areas All identified world urbanized areas 500,000+ and others: Population & Density.
• Geopolis: research group, University of Paris-Diderot, France for world urban areas
• Gridded Population of the World – contains links to urban area definitions and maps for over 230 countries/territories
• City Mayors – The World's Largest Urban Areas in 2006
• City Mayors – The World's Largest Urban Areas Projected for 2020
• PopulationData – World's largest urban areas 1,000,000+ population