list of the world’s largest cities by population

Guangzhou skylineSkyline view of Guangzhou, China; Canton Tower, China's tallest tower at the time it was completed, is visible in the far distance at the center of the photograph.
Aerial view of Tokyo
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Aerial view of TokyoThe vast and dense expanse of Tokyo viewed from the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower.
Aerial view of Shanghai
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Aerial view of ShanghaiElevated view of Shanghai's financial district, located along the Huangpu River.
New Delhi street scene
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New Delhi street sceneView of a bustling street in New Delhi's Paharganj neighborhood.

With more than 70 million inhabitants, Guangzhou, China, is far and away the world’s largest city. But, what defines a city? When you are comparing developments with tens of millions of people located in countries across the globe, a unified definition is tricky—one needs to consider a variety of population groupings, including urban populations, consolidated urban areas, agglomerations, and conglomerations. However, all these groupings have one thing in common: they feature a central city surrounded by contiguous settlements of people. The list below represents the world’s 25 largest such groupings.

rank central city country urban area type urban area population (2024 est.) details
1Urban population: densely populated and continuous urban settlement.
2Agglomeration: large, densely and contiguously populated area consisting of a city and its suburbs.
3Conglomeration: grouping of two or more agglomerations.
4Consolidated urban area: combination of neighboring urban areas or populations.
Source: Thomas Brinkhoff: Major Agglomerations of the World.
1 Guangzhou China urban population1 70,100,000 Includes Dongguan, Foshan, Huizhou, Jiangmen, Shenzhen, and Zhongshan.
2 Tokyo Japan agglomeration2 41,000,000 Includes Chiba, Kawasaki, Maebashi, Sagamihara, Saitama, Utsunomiya, and Yokohama.
3 Shanghai China urban population1 40,800,000 Includes Changshu, Changzhou, Suzhou, and Wuxi.
4 Delhi India conglomeration3 34,600,000 Includes Faridabad, Ghaziabad, and Gurugram.
5 Jakarta Indonesia agglomeration2 29,200,000 Includes Bekasi, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Tangerang Selatan.
6 Manila Philippines agglomeration2 27,200,000 Includes Caloocan and Quezon City
7 Mumbai India conglomeration3 27,100,000 Includes Bhiwandi, Kalyan, Thane, Ulhasnagar, and Vasai-Virar.
8 Mexico City Mexico consolidated urban area4 25,100,000 Includes Nezahualcóyotl, Ecatepec, and Naucalpan.
8 Seoul South Korea consolidated urban area4 25,100,000 Includes Bucheon, Goyang, Incheon, Seongnam, and Suwon.
10 Cairo Egypt agglomeration2 22,500,000 Includes Giza and Shubrā al-Khaymah.
10 Dhaka Bangladesh agglomeration2 22,500,000
12 São Paulo Brazil agglomeration2 22,100,000 Includes Guarulhos.
13 New York City U.S. consolidated urban area4 22,000,000 Includes Bridgeport, Newark, and New Haven.
14 Beijing China urban population1 21,200,000
14 Bangkok Thailand agglomeration2 21,200,000
16 Karachi Pakistan agglomeration2 20,900,000
17 Lagos Nigeria 20,700,000 Source notes low reliability.
18 Moscow Russia agglomeration2 19,100,000
19 Kolkata India conglomeration3 17,700,000 Includes Haora.
19 Ōsaka Japan agglomeration2 17,700,000 Includes Himeji, Kōbe, Kyōto, and Sakai.
21 Chengdu China urban population1 17,300,000
22 Los Angeles U.S. consolidated urban area4 17,200,000 Includes Anaheim and Riverside.
23 Buenos Aires Argentina consolidated urban area4 16,700,000 Includes San Justo and La Plata.
24 Tehrān Iran agglomeration2 16,500,000 Includes Karaj.
25 Istanbul Turkey agglomeration2 15,900,000 Includes Gebze.
Mindy Johnston
Citation Information
Article Title: list of the world’s largest cities by population
Website Name: Encyclopaedia Britannica
Publisher: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Date Published: 26 September 2024
URL: https://www.britannica.comhttps://www.britannica.com/topic/list-of-the-worlds-largest-cities-by-population
Access Date: November 21, 2024