List of cities in China by population

China is the world's most populous country. According to Demographia, in 2017 there were 102 Chinese cities with over 1 million people in the "urban area", as defined by the group's methodology.^[1]

Definition and classification

According to the administrative divisions of China, there are three levels of cities, namely direct-administered municipalities (直辖市), prefecture-level cities (地级市), and county-level cities (县级市). The Special Administrative Regions (特别行政区) of Hong Kong and Macau are not included in this administrative classification.

Municipalities and prefecture-level cities are not each a 'city' in the strictest sense of the term, but instead an administrative unit comprising, typically, both the urban core (a city in the strict sense) and surrounding rural or less-urbanized areas.^[2]

Prefecture-level cities nearly always contain multiple counties (县), county-level cities, and other such sub-divisions. To distinguish a prefecture-level city from its actual urban area (city in the strict sense), the term "市区" (shì qū; "urban area") is used. However, even this term often encompasses large suburban regions often greater than 3,000 square kilometres (1,000 sq mi), sometimes only the urban core whereas the agglomeration overtake the city limits. Thus, the "urban core" would be roughly comparable to the American term "city limit", the "shì qū", or "urban area", would be roughly comparable to "metropolitan area", and the municipality is a political designation defining regions under control of a municipal government, which has no comparable designation.

Largest cities in mainland China by population of urban area
Rank	City	Province	Latest Estimate^[3]	2010 Census^[4]
1	Shanghai	—	24,870,895	20,217,748
2	Beijing^⍟^#	—	21,167,303	16,704,306
3	Guangzhou^#^*	Guangdong	18,810,600	10,641,408
4	Shenzhen^#^~	Guangdong	17,633,800	10,358,381
5	Chengdu^#^*	Sichuan	15,025,554	7,791,692
6	Tianjin^#^†	—	13,929,152	9,528,277
7	Chongqing^#^*	—	12,313,714	6,263,790
8	Nanjing^*	Jiangsu	9,320,689	5,827,888
9	Wuhan^#^*	Hubei	8,546,775	7,541,527
10	Xi'an^#^*	Shaanxi	8,438,050	5,403,052
11	Hangzhou^*	Zhejiang	7,969,372	5,849,537
12	Shenyang^*	Liaoning	7,469,474	5,718,232
13	Dongguan	Guangdong	7,489,198	7,271,322
14	Foshan	Guangdong	7,462,797	6,771,895
15	Harbin^*	Heilongjiang	6,612,795	4,596,313
16	Dalian^~	Liaoning	5,871,474	3,902,467
17	Qingdao^~	Shandong	5,818,255	4,556,077
18	Zhengzhou^#^*	Henan	5,621,593	3,677,032
19	Jinan^*	Shandong	5,606,374	3,641,562
20	Changsha^*	Hunan	4,766,296	3,193,354
21	Kunming^*	Yunnan	4,422,686	3,385,363
22	Changchun^*	Jilin	4,408,154	3,411,209
23	Ürümqi^*	Xinjiang	4,335,017	2,853,398
24	Shantou^†	Guangdong	4,312,192	3,644,017
25	Suzhou	Jiangsu	4,330,000	3,721,700
26	Hefei^*	Anhui	4,216,940	3,098,727
27	Shijiazhuang^*	Hebei	4,098,243	3,095,219
28	Ningbo^~	Zhejiang	4,087,523	2,583,073
29	Taiyuan^*	Shanxi	3,875,053	3,154,157
30	Nanning^*	Guangxi	3,837,978	2,660,833
31	Xiamen^†	Fujian	3,707,090	3,119,110
32	Fuzhou^*^~	Fujian	3,671,192	3,102,421
33	Wenzhou^~	Zhejiang	3,604,446	2,686,825
34	Changzhou	Jiangsu	3,601,079	2,257,376
35	Nanchang^*	Jiangxi	3,576,547	2,614,380
36	Tangshan	Hebei	3,399,231	2,128,191
37	Guiyang^*	Guizhou	3,299,724	2,520,061
38	Wuxi	Jiangsu	3,245,179	2,757,736
39	Lanzhou^*	Gansu	3,067,141	2,438,595
40	Zhongshan	Guangdong	2,909,633	2,740,994

Definition and classification

List of major cities by population

Urban population

Locations of the 50 most populous cities in Mainland China

Cities and towns by population

See also

References

External links