I’ve presented you the top 50 largest cities in the world in 2016. It’s time to see how things changed and which are now the largest cities in the world by population, the largest cities in the world by area, the megacities in the world, the built-up urban area population, and some interesting discoveries.

1072 larger urban areas – meaning urban agglomerations with 500,000 or more residents are presented in the new report by Demographia World Urban Areas.

As you’ll see, there are more megacities in 2019 than in 2018, and some changes in terms of the top most populous cities in the world.

Top largest cities in the world

Distribution of population

Striking fact: There are 38 megacities, yet approximately 70% of the world’s population lives in urban areas with fewer than 500,000 residents or in rural areas.

How come?

Well, it’s rather easy to understand: most of the big cities have suburbs with a lower population density and it’s here that most people live, as well as in rural areas.

World population by continent

The most populous continent is Asia with 57.6% of the people living here. Next on the list is North America – 12.5% – followed by Africa – 11.6% – and Europe – 9.7%.

Indeed, there’s a huge distance between the biggest continent – in terms of the distribution of the population by continent – and the rest of the continents. It is no surprise that the most populous city is from Asia.

Top 10 largest cities in the world

1. Tokyo-Yokohama – Tokyo is also the SAFEST city in the world, according to a study
2. Jakarta
3. Delhi
4. Manila
5. Seoul-Incheon
6. Mumbai
7. Shanghai
8. New York
9. Sao Paolo
10. Mexico City

As you can easily see, most of these biggest cities in the world are from Asia. In fact. Apart from New York, Sao Paolo, and Mexico City, the rest (7) are from Asia – therefore it is no surprise that Asia is the most populous continent in the world.

Tokyo is the most populous urban area in the world. There are more than 38.5 million people living here which makes this the largest city in the world, in terms of population.

Jakarta has over 34 million residents.

The other large urban areas in the world have more than 20 million people each.

For comparison, back in 2016, the first 10 largest urban areas in the world were:

• Tokyo–Yokohama (Japan)
• Jakarta (Indonesia)
• Delhi (India)
• Seoul–Incheon (South Korea)
• Manila (Philippines)
• Mumbai (India)
• Karachi (Pakistan)
• Shanghai (China)
• New York (United States)
• Sao Paolo (Brazil)

Megacities – 2019 – most populous urban areas

It’s time to discover the largest urban areas across the globe. These are the biggest cities and biggest urban areas – they have more than 10 million residents.

1. Tokyo-Yokohama
2. Jakarta
3. Delhi
4. Manila
5. Seoul-Incheon
6. Mumbai (read the local’s guide to Mumbai here)
7. Shanghai
8. New York (discover the local’s guide to NYC, the perfect itinerary for 3 days in New York City by a local, a dedicated guide to Queens and one for Brooklyn, and 20 free things to do in NYC, and a few day trips from New York ideas)
9. Sao Paolo
10. Mexico City
11. Guangzhou-Foshan
12. Beijing
13. Dhaka
14. Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto
15. Cairo
16. Moscow
17. Bangkok
18. Los Angeles (here’s your LA travel guide and discover the natural wonders in Los Angeles here)
19. Kolkata (this is the comprehensive guide to Kolkata)
20. Buenos Aires
21. Lagos
22. Tehran
23. Istanbul
24. Karachi
25. Shenzhen
26. Tianjin
27. Kinshasa
28. Chendu
29. Rio de Janeiro
30. Lahore
31. Lima
32. Bangalore
33. Paris (here’s how to spend 1 day in Paris, things to know before your first trip to Paris, what not to do in Paris, my favourite 5 places to visit in Paris, the perfect bucket list for your first trip to Paris)
34. Ho Chi Minh City
35. London (discover London like a local – hidden gems, read the insider’s guide to London, create your bucket list if you are a museum lover, find out the best free things to do in London, and UNESCO sites in London)
36. Bogota
37. Chennai
38. Nagoya (read the insider’s guide to Nagoya)

As you can see, these largest cities in the world are from almost all continents.

Top 50 Largest build-up urban areas in the world

Now, apart from the 38 megacities above, let’s see the rest of the largest urban areas in the world:

39. Hyderabad (discover the best places to visit in Hyderabad)
40 Johannesburg-East Rand
41. Chicago, IL-IN-WI
42. Taipei
43. Wuhan, HUB
44. Dongguan, GD
45. Hanoi (discover the best things to do in Hanoi, restaurants and more)
46. Chongqing, CQ
47. Onitsha (Nigeria)
48. Kuala Lumpur (read here the comprehensive guide to Kuala Lumpur)
49. Ahmadabad, GJ
50. Luanda (Angola)

Built-up urban areas by land area (urban footprint): 2019

Another interesting thing to look at is the top 20 built-up urban areas by land area. As you’ll see below, these areas are different than the largest cities in the world. Apart from a city in Russia, 2 in Japan, 3 in China, 1 in Indonesia, and 1 in Argentina, all the other built-up urban areas by land area are from the United States!

Let’s see the top 20 most populated cities in the world by area.

1. New York
2. Boston-Providence
3. Tokyo-Yokohama
4. Atlanta
5. Chicago
6. Los Angeles
7. Moscow
8. Washington-Baltimore
9. Philadelphia
10. Dallas-Fort Worth
11. Houston
12. Beijing
13. Detroit
14. Shanghai
15. Guangzhou-Foshan
16. Nagoya
17. Cleveland
18. Jakarta
19. Phoenix
20. Buenos Aires

Built-up urban areas by urban population density

Now, these are indeed the cities and urban areas!

If you want to know which are the most populated cities in the world by density, pay attention below:

1. Dhaka (Bangladesh)
2. Mogadishu (Somalia)
3. Surat (India)
4. Mumbai (India)
5. Macau (China)
6. Hong Kong (China)
7. Tshikapa (Congo)
8. Al-Raqqa (Syria)
9. Bukavu (Congo)
10. Muzaffarnagar (India)
11. Firozabad (India)
12. Kinshasa (Congo)
13. Malegaon (India)
14. Ahmadabad (India)
15. Asansol (India)
16. Moradabad (India)
17. Vijayawada (India)
18. Siliguri (India)
19. Aleppo (Syria)
20. Hama (Syria)

As you can see, most of the cities are from India – and even more from Asia – so it’s no surprise that Asia is the most populated continent in the world.

Of course, I was curious to see where does my hometown – Bucharest, Romania – fit in these tops. I discovered that Bucharest ranks 264 in the largest cities in the world top, 314 in the top most populated cities by area, and 571 in the top built-up areas by population density.

In conclusion:

• the largest built-up urban area in the world is Tokyo-Yokohama (Japan)

• the largest built-up area by land area is New York (USA)

• the largest built-up area by population density is Dhaka (Bangladesh)

The study is quite interesting so I am truly recommending it to you. You may download the pdf and check it out – see where your hometown ranks or other favorite cities!

Violeta Loredana

Violeta-Loredana Pascal is a communications expert, business mentor, and the founder of Earth’s Attractions and PRwave INTERNATIONAL. A pioneer in the Romanian digital PR landscape since 2005, she holds a degree in Communication and Social Sciences from SNSPA Bucharest. Violeta is a senior trainer at AcademiadeAfaceri.ro, where she leverages over 20 years of experience to teach professional courses in PR strategy and workplace productivity. By blending high-level business consulting with a passion for holistic travel and wellness, she empowers solopreneurs to overcome procrastination, build profitable brands, and design a life of purposeful adventure.