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The question of which are the world's largest cities
World's largest cities

The question of determining the world's largest cities does not allow a single, simple answer. It depends on which definitions of "city" and "size" are used, and how those definitions are applied....
 is a complex one, to which there is no single correct answer, simply because there are many different ways of defining a "city". One concept is the metropolitan area
Metropolitan area

A metropolitan area is a large population center consisting of a large metropolis and its adjacent zone of influence, or of more than one closely adjoining neighboring central city and their zone of influence....
, which is based on the concept of a labor market area and is typically defined as an employment core (an area with a high density of available jobs) and the surrounding areas that have strong commuting ties to the core.

The following is a list of the twenty largest metropolitan areas in 2003 as defined by one source.






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The question of which are the world's largest cities
World's largest cities

The question of determining the world's largest cities does not allow a single, simple answer. It depends on which definitions of "city" and "size" are used, and how those definitions are applied....
 is a complex one, to which there is no single correct answer, simply because there are many different ways of defining a "city". One concept is the metropolitan area
Metropolitan area

A metropolitan area is a large population center consisting of a large metropolis and its adjacent zone of influence, or of more than one closely adjoining neighboring central city and their zone of influence....
, which is based on the concept of a labor market area and is typically defined as an employment core (an area with a high density of available jobs) and the surrounding areas that have strong commuting ties to the core.

The following is a list of the twenty largest metropolitan areas in 2003 as defined by one source. As population figures are interpreted and presented differently according to different methods of data collection, definitions and sources, these numbers should be viewed as approximate. Data from other sources may be equally valid but differ due to being measured according to different criteria or taken from different census years.

RankMetropolitan areaCountryPopulationArea (km2)Population Density (People/km2)
1Tokyo
Greater Tokyo Area

The Greater Tokyo Area is a large metropolitan area in Japan consisting of most of the Prefectures of Japan of Chiba Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture, Saitama Prefecture, and Tokyo ....
32,450,0008,0144,049
2Seoul20,550,0005,0764,048
3Mexico City
Greater Mexico City

Greater Mexico City refers to the conurbation around Mexico City, officially called Mexico City Metropolitan Area , constituted by the Federal District?itself composed of 16 boroughs of Mexico City?and 41 adjacent municipalities of Mexico of the states of state of Mexico and Hidalgo ....
20,450,0007,3462,784
4New York City
New York metropolitan area

The New York metropolitan area or Tri-State Region is the most populous metropolitan area in the United States and is also List of metropolitan areas by population....
19,750,00017,8841,104
5Mumbai
Mumbai metropolitan area

The Mumbai Metropolitan Area/Mumbai Metropolitan Region is a metropolitan area consisting of the metropolis of Mumbai and its satellite towns. Developing over a period of about 20 years, it consists of seven municipal corporations and fifteen smaller municipal councils....
19,200,0002,3508,170
6Jakarta
Jabotabek

Jabotabek or Jabodetabek is one officially recognized definition and term given to the metropolitan area surrounding Jakarta, Indonesia. The population in Indonesia 2000 census was counted to be 23.3 million, making it the largest metropolitan area in Indonesia, and 2nd in the list of metropolitan areas by population....
18,900,0005,1003,706
7São Paulo
Greater São Paulo

The Greater S?o Paulo is a nonspecific term for the large metropolitan area located in the S?o Paulo States of Brazil in Brazil....
18,850,0008,4792,223
8Delhi18,600,0003,1825,845
9Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto
Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto

is a metropolitan region encompassing the metropolitan areas of the cities of Osaka in Osaka prefecture, Kobe in Hyogo Prefecture, and Kyoto in Kyoto prefecture....
17,375,0006,9302,507
10Shanghai
Shanghai

Shanghai is the List of cities in the People's Republic of China by population in China and one of the List of metropolitan areas by population in the world, with over 20 million people....
16,650,0005,1773,216
11Metro Manila
Metro Manila

Metropolitan Manila or the National Capital Region is the metropolitan area of the city of Manila, the national capital of the Philippines....
16,300,0002,5216,466
12Hong Kong
Hong Kong

Hong Kong , officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located in Southern China in East Asia, bordering the province of Guangdong to the north and facing the South China Sea to the east, west and south....
-Shenzhen
Shenzhen

Shenzhen is a city of sub-provincial city administrative status in southern China's Guangdong province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong....
15,800,0003,0515,179
13Los Angeles15,250,00010,7801,415
14Kolkata
Kolkata metropolitan area

Kolkata Metropolitan Area is the urban agglomeration of the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, India....
15,100,0001,7858,459
15Moscow
Moscow

Moscow is the capital and the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia of the Russian Federation. It is also the largest European cities and metropolitan areas, with the Moscow metropolitan area ranking among the largest urban areas in the world....
15,000,00014,9251,005
16Cairo
Cairo

Cairo , which means "the triumphant", is the Cairo and largest city of Egypt.It is the most populous metropolitan area in Egypt and is also one of the most populous in the world....
14,450,0001,6009,031
17Buenos Aires13,170,00010,8881,210
18London
London commuter belt

The London commuter belt is the metropolitan area surrounding Greater London, England from which it is possible to commuting to work in the capital....
12,875,00011,3911,130
19Beijing
Beijing

is a metropolis in northern China and the Capital of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the four municipality of China, which are equivalent to province in China's Political divisions of China....
12,500,0006,5621,905
20Karachi
Karachi

is the largest city, seaport and the International financial centre of Pakistan. It is List of metropolitan areas by population in terms of metropolitan population, and is Pakistan's premier centre of banking, industry, and trade....
11,800,0001,10010,727


See also

  • World's largest urban agglomerations
    World's largest urban agglomerations

    This is a list of the 100 largest urban agglomerations in the world according to the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects report . The term ?urban agglomeration? refers to the population contained within the contours of a contiguous territory inhabited at urban density levels without regard to administrative boundaries or commuter flow...
  • List of urban areas by population
    List of urban areas by population

    This is a list of contiguous urban areas of the world ordered according to population as of 2008. The figures here have been compiled by Demographia....
  • List of cities proper by population
  • Larger Urban Zone - for an attempt at a harmonized definition for certain EU cities

Lists of metropolitan areas by region

  • Africa
    List of the largest metropolitan areas in Africa

    This is a list of the largest metropolitan areas in Africa.Source...
  • Americas
    List of the largest metropolitan areas in the Americas

    This is a list of the largest metropolitan areas in the Americas....
  • Europe


Lists of metropolitan areas by country or region

  • Australia
    List of cities in Australia by population

    This list of Australian cities by population briefly explains the three different population figures given for Australian cities, and provides rankings for each....
  • Belgium
    List of Belgian municipalities by population

    This is a list of Belgium municipality by population, as of January 1, 2007:The Brussels-Capital Region comprises the following municipalities:...
  • Brazil
    List of major cities in Brazil

    This is a list of the largest cities in Brazil. Brazil has a relatively high reported level of urbanization, with 8 out of every 10 Brazilians living in cities....
  • Canada
    List of the 100 largest metropolitan areas in Canada

    The table below lists the 100 largest metropolitan areas in Canada by population, using data from the Canada 2001 Census and the Canada 2006 Census....
  • China
    List of cities in the People's Republic of China by population

    This list ranks cities in the People's Republic of China by population.According to the administrative divisions of the People's Republic of China, there are three level of cities, namely municipality of China, prefecture-level city , and county-level cities....
  • France
    Aire urbaine

    The aire urbaine is an INSEE statistical region comprising a couronne p?riurbaine commuter belt around a contiguous p?le urbain . As it is specifically defined by statistical criteria, it is similar--though not identical--to the more general term of "metropolitan area" used in English....
  • Germany
    Metropolitan Regions in Germany

    The Metropolitan Regions in Germany are the largest and most densely populated areas in the Federal Republic of Germany. They comprise the major German cities and their surrounding metropolitan areas and form the political, commercial and cultural centers of the country....
  • India
    List of most populous metropolitan areas in India

    This article lists the top hundred metropolitan areas in India by population as of 2008. The combined population of these 100 metros accounts for approximately one-seventh of the national population....
  • Italy
  • Japan
    List of metropolitan areas in Japan by population

    This table contains lists of Japanese metropolitan areas , as defined by . The lists include the prefectures containing the region, the population of the region, and the central cities of each region....
  • Mexico
  • Netherlands
    List of cities in the Netherlands with over 100,000 people

    This is a list of city in the Netherlands with over 100,000 people ranked by population size. The data as of October 27, 2008 are based on the publication of the Statistics Netherlands ....
  • Pakistan
    List of most populated metropolitan areas in Pakistan

    The following twenty most populous urban areas of Pakistan host about one-fifth of the country's total population . Sixty-seven areas have a population of at least 1 million and these sixty seven areas are home to 42.8 million people or about one-fourth of the country's total population....
  • Russia
    List of cities and towns in Russia by population

    This is a list of types of inhabited localities in Russia in Russia with population over 50,000, grouped by federal subjects of Russia and sorted by population....
  • Scandinavia
    List of cities in the Nordic countries

    The following list consists of cities in the Nordic countries, ranked by population, as of 2008....
  • Spain
    List of metropolitan areas in Spain by population

    This is a list of the largest metropolitan areas in Spain by population....
  • Turkey
    List of cities in Turkey

    This is a list of cities in Turkey by population.Included are cities that are provincial capitals or have a population of at least 7,000....
  • Ukraine
    List of cities in Ukraine

    As of January 1, 2008 there are 458 cities in Ukraine. Administrative centers of federal subjects are listed in bold text. Below is the list of all cities by population as of 2001 Ukrainian Census....
  • United Kingdom
    List of conurbations in the United Kingdom

    A conurbation is formed when towns expand sufficiently that their urban areas join up with each other. This process has happened many times in the United Kingdom....
  • United States


External links

  • - has some definitions for OECD countries