List of two-tier counties of England

This is a list of non-metropolitan counties of England by population.

It includes those non-metropolitan counties (also known as shire counties) with a two-tier county council structure and does not include metropolitan counties or unitary authorities.

In cases where a unitary authority has been detached from a shire county the population of the unitary authority is excluded. For example, Peterborough is excluded from the population figure for Cambridgeshire.

The figures are mid-year estimates for 2010 from the Office for National Statistics.

Rank	County	Population	Area (in km²)	Density (people/km²)
1	Hampshire	1,743,700	3,679	463
2	Essex	1,412,900	3,464	408
3	Kent	1,427,500	3,544	403
4	Lancashire	1,169,300	2,903	403
5	Surrey	1,127,300	1,663	678
6	Hertfordshire	1,107,600	1,643	674
7	Norfolk	862,400	5,371	161
8	Staffordshire	831,300	2,620	317
9	West Sussex	799,800	1,990	402
10	Nottinghamshire	779,800	2,085	374
11	Derbyshire	763,700	2,547	300
12	Devon	750,000	6,564	114
13	Suffolk	719,500	3,800	189
14	Lincolnshire	703,000	5,921	119
15	Northamptonshire	687,300	2,364	291
16	Leicestershire	648,700	2,083	311
17	Oxfordshire	648,700	2,605	249
18	Cambridgeshire	616,200	3,046	202
19	North Yorkshire	599,800	8,038	75
20	Gloucestershire	593,500	2,653	224
21	Worcestershire	557,400	1,741	320
22	Warwickshire	536,100	1,975	271
23	Somerset	525,200	3,451	152
24	East Sussex	515,600	1,709	302
25	Buckinghamshire	498,100	1,565	318
26	Cumbria	494,300	6,767	73
27	Dorset	404,700	2,542	159

References

"Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.