The 2024 Largest Cities in the World by Population

More than half of the world's population resides in urban areas, with over 4 billion people depending on cities as their main environment. According to the United Nationslatest report on populations in cities, this number is expected to continue to increase over the next 50 years, prompting cities worldwide to strive to find better ways to accommodate their growing population while transitioning to more sustainable urban practices. To highlight this responsibility, the United Nations has declared July 11th the World Population Day.

Under this year’s theme, “To Leave No One Behind, Count Everyone,” the UN aims to also draw attention to the importance of data collection for reflecting societal diversity. The growth of world cities is part of this equation as an important measure for understanding global population trends. The following list presents the top 20 cities worldwide in 2024, ranked by the population size of their metropolitan areas. Comparing the results to the previous editions, the only cities to reduce their size are the two cities from Japan, Tokyo and Osaka. The highest growth rates can be observed in African mega-cities, Kinshasa and Lagos, while China continues to be the most present country in the list, with 5 metropolises present in the top 20: Shanghai, Beijing, Chongqing, Tianjin, and Guangzhou.

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Discover below the top 20 largest cities in the world, measured according to population, along with their growth rate in comparison to last year's numbers.


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1. Tokyo, Japan

Population: 37,115,035 (-0.21%)

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Tokyo, Japan. Image © vichie81 via Shutterstock

2. Delhi, India

Population: 33,807,403 (2.63%)

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New Delhi, India - April, 2022, Aerial view of Connaught Place . Image © Paulose NK via Shutterstock

3. Shanghai, China

Population: 29,867,918 (2.25%)

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Shanghai, China. Image © yinggw via Shutetrstock

4. Dhaka, Bangladesh

Population: 23,935,652 (3.13%)

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Aerial view of Hatirjheel, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Image © Lumenite via Shutterstock

5. Sao Paulo, Brazil

Population: 22,806,704 (0.83%)

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The Octavio Frias de Oliveira bridge, is a cable-stayed bridge in São Paulo, Brazil over the Pinheiros River, opened in May 2008. It connects Marginal Pinheiros to Jornalista Roberto Marinho Avenue. Image © Raphael Paulino Goncalves via Shutterstock

6. Cairo, Egypt

Population: 22,623,874 (1.99%)

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Cairo, Egypt. Image © Prin Adulyatham via Shutterstock

7. Mexico City, Mexico

Population: 22,505,315 (1%)

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Aerial view of constitution square in Mexico city. Image © Aleksandr Medvedkov via Shutterstock

8. Beijing, China

Population: 22,189,082 (1.94%)

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Beijing, China. Image © ESB Professional via Shutterstock

9. Mumbai, India

Population: 21,673,149 (1.77%)

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Mumbai Metro line. India. Image © Andre J. Fanthome

10. Osaka, Japan

Population: 18,967,459 (-0.24%)

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Osaka, Japan. Image © cowardlion via Shutterstock

11. Chongqing, China

Population: 17,773,923 (2.5%)

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Chongqing, China.. Image © zhangyuqiu via Shutterstock

12. Karachi, Pakistan

Population: 17,648,555 (2.39%)

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Karachi, Pakistan . Image © Aqib Yasin via Shutterstock

13. Kinshasa, DR Congo

Population: 17,032,322 (4.39%)

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Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. Image © Issa Kashala via Shutterstock

14. Lagos, Nigeria

Population: 16,536,018 (3.7%)

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Lagos, Nigeria. Image © By Tayvay via Shutterstock

15. Istanbul, Turkey

Population: 16,047,350 (1.26%)

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Istanbul, Turkey. Image © Budilnikov Yuriy via Shutterstock

16. Buenos Aires, Argentina

Population: 15,618,288 (0.83%)

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Buenos Aires, Argentina. Image © Flickr user Luis Argerich CC BY 2.0

17. Kolkata, India

Population: 15,570,786 (1.55%)

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Kolkata, India. The Famous Howrah Bridge over the River Ganges where People ,taking Holy bath in River Ganges. Image © ABIR ROY BARMAN via Shutterstock

18. Manila, Philippines

Population: 14,941,953 (1.87%)

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Manila, Philippines. Image © KieferPix via Shutterstock

19. Guangzhou, China

Population: 14,590,096 (2.14%)

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Guangzhou, China. Image © sleepingpanda via Shutterstock

20. Tianjin, China

Population: 14,470,873 (1.63%)

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Tianjin, China. Image © By chuyuss via Shutterstock

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Cite: Maria-Cristina Florian. "The 2024 Largest Cities in the World by Population" 11 Jul 2024. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1018730/the-2024-largest-cities-in-the-world-by-population> ISSN 0719-8884

Shanghai, China. Image © Luwei Teng

2024 年世界人口最多的城市排名

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