What is the largest city in the world? Winners by population and area.
What is the largest city in the world? Hint: It has a population of over 37 million.
About eight billion people live on planet Earth, a milestone that the United Nations estimated we passed on Nov. 15, 2022. It’s a stark increase from the world population in 1950, which was 2.5 billion. Still, the U.N. estimates the growth rate is slowing – it’ll take approximately 15 years to reach nine billion people.
About 335 million of the world’s population lives in the United States, according to recent U.S. Census estimates. And while the U.S. is among the world’s most populous countries, its numbers pale in comparison to India and China, which each have over 1.4 billion people.
Here are the top 10 largest cities by population in 2024 according to World Population Review, rounded:
Each country defines a city differently, making a standard measurement for the largest city by area harder to determine.
To combat inconsistency across countries, Demographia created “Urban Areas,” a standardized way to measure cities that factors in population density. Using Urban Area as a form of measurement, cities and areas are grouped together so the top 10 largest cities by area are not the individual cities but rather groups of cities within a determined proximity.
Here are the top 10 largest cities in terms of square miles according to the World Population Review, based on reports from Demographia:
What state has the lowest population? Top 10 least-populated states
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