Demographics

Ranked: The Most Populous Cities in the World

Published

3 years ago

January 19, 2021

Avery Koop

most populous cities

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Ranked: The Most Populous Cities in the World

More than half of the world’s population currently lives in cities—and as time goes on, it’s clear that more urban dwellers will find themselves living in megacities.

Megacities are defined as urban areas with a population of more than 10 million people. This means that the world’s top 20 most populous cities are all megacities.

This visualization, using data from Macrotrends, shows the 20 most populous cities in the world.

Rapid Urbanization

Today, more than 80% of people in higher income countries find themselves living in urban areas, and in upper-middle income countries the number lies between 50-80%.

Rural-to-urban migration is an increasingly relevant trend in the 21st century. Prospects of better job opportunities and higher wages, along with shifts from agrarian to industrial and service-based economies, are causing mass movement to cities.

How much have the world’s five most populous cities grown in just the last decade?

Rank	City	2010 Population	2020 Population	Percentage Change
#1	🇯🇵 Tokyo	36,834,000	37,393,000	+1.5%
#2	🇮🇳 Delhi	21,935,000	30,291,000	+38.1%
#3	🇨🇳 Shanghai	19,980,000	27,058,000	+35.4%
#4	🇧🇷 São Paulo	19,660,000	22,043,000	+12.1%
#5	🇲🇽 Mexico City	20,132,000	21,782,000	+8.2%

While Tokyo only gained 559,000 people between 2010 and 2020, Delhi gained over 8 million people in the same time frame.

Shanghai grew by over 7 million people. Meanwhile, São Paulo grew by more than 2 million, and Mexico City gained just over 1.6 million people.

Interestingly, Mexico City placed third on the top largest cities list in 2010, but has since experienced slower growth compared to its competitors, Shanghai and São Paulo.

The Most Populous Cities Today

While Tokyo is the world’s most populous city with 37,393,000 people, this number is leveling out due to declining birth rates and an aging population.

Indian and Chinese cities, on the other hand, will continue to grow rapidly in the coming years. In fact, it’s expected that Delhi’s population could surpass Tokyo’s by 2028.

Here’s a closer look at the top 20 most populous cities.

Rank	City	Population
1	🇯🇵 Tokyo	37,393,000
2	🇮🇳 Delhi	30,291,000
3	🇨🇳 Shanghai	27,058,000
4	🇧🇷 São Paulo	22,043,000
5	🇲🇽 Mexico City	21,782,000
6	🇧🇩 Dhaka	21,006,000
7	🇪🇬 Cairo	20,901,000
8	🇨🇳 Beijing	20,463,000
9	🇮🇳 Mumbai	20,411,000
10	🇯🇵 Osaka	19,165,000
11	🇺🇸 New York City	18,804,000
12	🇵🇰 Karachi	16,094,000
13	🇨🇳 Chongqing	15,872,000
14	🇹🇷 Istanbul	15,190,000
15	🇦🇷 Buenos Aires	15,154,000
16	🇮🇳 Kolkata	14,850,000
17	🇳🇬 Lagos	14,368,000
18	🇨🇩 Kinshasa	14,342,000
19	🇵🇭 Manila	13,923,000
20	🇨🇳 Tianjin	13,580,000

By 2035, two new cities are expected to crack the top 20 list. Specifically, it’s projected that Bangalore (India) and Lahore (Pakistan) will boot out Tianjin and Buenos Aires. In addition, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Chennai are all expected to meet the megacity definition by 2035.

Urban growth will continue mainly in Asia and Africa, as some cities in regions such as Europe actually begin to shrink in population due to aging citizens and declining birth rates. Since 2012, deaths in the EU have actually been outpacing births—and in 2019, there were 4.7 million deaths compared to 4.2 million births, though net migration kept population numbers from falling.

Life in the City

While there are certainly downsides to mass urbanization, like pollution and overcrowding, the upsides clearly outweigh the negatives for most people. Convenience, better jobs, easier access to social services, and higher wages are among the many reasons people are likely to continue to move to cities, even in the post-COVID era.

With the emergence of smart and green cities, the quality of life for many urban dwellers will likely continue to improve, and more large urban areas will morph into megacities.

Related Topics:china india population urbanization largest cities most populous cities top cities rural to urban migration

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Which Countries Have the Most and Least Women in the Workforce?

More women in the workforce can indicate a shift towards women having more economic opportunities and facing fewer barriers to working outside the home.

Published

49 mins ago

June 6, 2024

Pallavi Rao

A cropped map and ranking of countries with the highest and lowest percentage of women in the workforce.

Countries With the Most and Least Women in the Workforce

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

This map shows the top and bottom 10 countries by the percentage of their women population (aged 15+) in the labor force. This is also called the female workforce participation rate.

Data for this graphic is sourced from the World Bank, which aggregates International Labour Organization estimates from 2023.

ℹ️ A country’s labor force includes people aged 15+ who are working or actively looking for work in exchange for pay, profit, or shared production. Unpaid workers, family caretakers, students, and military personnel (depending on the country) may be excluded from this count.

Ranked: Countries By Rate of Women in the Workforce

Madagascar, Burundi, and Mozambique have some of the highest women workforce participation rates in the world (near 80%).

Here’s a full ranking of countries by their female workforce participation rate.

Rank Country Female Labor
Force Participation
Rate (2023)

1 🇲🇬 Madagascar 83%

2 🇸🇧 Solomon Islands 83%

3 🇧🇮 Burundi 79%

4 🇲🇿 Mozambique 78%

5 🇹🇿 Tanzania 77%

6 🇪🇹 Ethiopia 75%

7 🇦🇴 Angola 73%

8 🇱🇷 Liberia 72%

9 🇰🇪 Kenya 72%

10 🇲🇩 Moldova 72%

11 🇪🇷 Eritrea 71%

12 🇸🇸 South Sudan 70%

13 🇮🇸 Iceland 70%

14 🇰🇵 North Korea 70%

15 🇰🇭 Cambodia 70%

16 🇻🇳 Viet Nam 69%

17 🇳🇿 New Zealand 68%

18 🇺🇬 Uganda 68%

19 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan 67%

20 🇨🇲 Cameroon 67%

21 🇨🇩 Congo 67%

22 🇵🇪 Peru 66%

23 🇧🇸 Bahamas 65%

24 🇬🇭 Ghana 65%

25 🇧🇹 Bhutan 65%

26 🇶🇦 Qatar 64%

27 🇲🇼 Malawi 64%

28 🇨🇫 Central African Republic 63%

29 🇸🇪 Sweden 63%

30 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan 63%

31 🇲🇴 Macao 63%

32 🇨🇩 DRC 63%

33 🇱🇨 St. Lucia 63%

34 🇳🇪 Niger 62%

35 🇳🇴 Norway 62%

36 🇳🇱 Netherlands 62%

37 🇸🇬 Singapore 62%

38 🇦🇺 Australia 62%

39 🇯🇲 Jamaica 61%

40 🇨🇭 Switzerland 61%

41 🇨🇦 Canada 61%

42 🇪🇪 Estonia 61%

43 🇹🇱 Timor-Leste 61%

44 🇭🇹 Haiti 61%

45 🇮🇱 Israel 61%

46 🇻🇺 Vanuatu 61%

47 🇨🇳 China 61%

48 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe 60%

49 🇨🇾 Cyprus 60%

50 🇧🇴 Bolivia 60%

51 🇧🇼 Botswana 60%

52 🇮🇪 Ireland 60%

53 🇩🇰 Denmark 60%

54 🇵🇾 Paraguay 60%

55 🇧🇾 Belarus 59%

56 🇹🇭 Thailand 59%

57 🇧🇧 Barbados 59%

58 🇬🇧 UK 58%

59 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 58%

60 🇫🇮 Finland 58%

61 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso 58%

62 🇱🇸 Lesotho 58%

63 🇱🇹 Lithuania 57%

64 🇲🇹 Malta 57%

65 🇦🇹 Austria 57%

66 🇧🇯 Benin 57%

67 🇨🇮 Cote d'Ivoire 57%

68 🇺🇸 U.S. 57%

69 🇩🇪 Germany 56%

70 🇬🇲 Gambia 56%

71 🇬🇺 Guam 56%

72 🇸🇰 Slovakia 56%

73 🇹🇬 Togo 56%

74 🇦🇲 Armenia 56%

75 🇱🇦 Laos 56%

76 🇰🇷 South Korea 56%

77 🇳🇦 Namibia 56%

78 🇺🇾 Uruguay 56%

79 🇱🇻 Latvia 56%

80 🇧🇳 Brunei 55%

81 🇦🇪 UAE 55%

82 🇵🇹 Portugal 55%

83 🇷🇼 Rwanda 55%

84 🇻🇨 St. Vincent & the Grenadines 55%

85 🇯🇵 Japan 55%

86 🇷🇺 Russia 55%

87 🇬🇪 Georgia 54%

88 🇭🇺 Hungary 54%

89 🇸🇮 Slovenia 54%

90 🇰🇬 Kyrgyz Republic 54%

91 🇮🇩 Indonesia 53%

92 🇪🇨 Ecuador 53%

93 🇧🇷 Brazil 53%

94 🇦🇱 Albania 53%

95 🇫🇷 France 53%

96 🇲🇳 Mongolia 53%

97 🇳🇨 New Caledonia 53%

98 🇪🇸 Spain 53%

99 🇿🇦 South Africa 52%

100 🇭🇰 Hong Kong 52%

101 🇳🇬 Nigeria 52%

102 🇿🇲 Zambia 52%

103 🇨🇿 Czechia 52%

104 🇨🇱 Chile 52%

105 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic 52%

106 🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea 52%

107 🇲🇾 Malaysia 52%

108 🇲🇱 Mali 52%

109 🇵🇱 Poland 52%

110 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone 52%

111 🇨🇴 Colombia 51%

112 🇨🇻 Cabo Verde 51%

113 🇬🇬 Channel Islands 51%

114 🇷🇸 Serbia 51%

115 🇦🇷 Argentina 51%

116 🇧🇪 Belgium 51%

117 🇵🇦 Panama 50%

118 🇧🇿 Belize 50%

119 🇧🇬 Bulgaria 50%

120 🇭🇳 Honduras 50%

121 🇵🇫 French Polynesia 49%

122 🇲🇪 Montenegro 49%

123 🇳🇮 Nicaragua 49%

124 🇹🇲 Turkmenistan 49%

125 🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau 49%

126 🇹🇩 Chad 49%

127 🇭🇷 Croatia 48%

128 🇰🇼 Kuwait 48%

129 🇸🇿 Eswatini 47%

130 🇵🇭 Philippines 47%

131 🇲🇽 Mexico 47%

132 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea 46%

133 🇸🇻 El Salvador 46%

134 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago 46%

135 🇬🇷 Greece 45%

136 🇻🇮 U.S. Virgin Islands 45%

137 🇨🇷 Costa Rica 45%

138 🇸🇷 Suriname 45%

139 🇧🇭 Bahrain 44%

140 🇲🇺 Mauritius 43%

141 🇹🇴 Tonga 43%

142 🇲🇻 Maldives 43%

143 🇲🇰 North Macedonia 43%

144 🇬🇳 Guinea 42%

145 🇷🇴 Romania 42%

146 🇨🇺 Cuba 42%

147 🇲🇲 Myanmar 42%

148 🇼🇸 Samoa 41%

149 🇮🇹 Italy 41%

150 🇬🇹 Guatemala 41%

151 🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina 41%

152 🇬🇦 Gabon 40%

153 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan 40%

154 🇬🇾 Guyana 40%

155 🇻🇪 Venezuela 39%

156 🇫🇯 Fiji 39%

157 🇸🇹 Sao Tome & Principe 38%

158 🇸🇳 Senegal 38%

159 🇧🇩 Bangladesh 37%

160 🇹🇷 Türkiye 35%

161 🇱🇾 Libya 35%

162 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia 35%

163 🇰🇲 Comoros 33%

164 🇮🇳 India 33%

165 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka 32%

166 🇴🇲 Oman 32%

167 🇵🇷 Puerto Rico 32%

168 🇹🇯 Tajikistan 32%

169 🇳🇵 Nepal 29%

170 🇸🇩 Sudan 28%

171 🇱🇧 Lebanon 28%

172 🇹🇳 Tunisia 27%

173 🇲🇷 Mauritania 26%

174 🇵🇰 Pakistan 25%

175 🇸🇴 Somalia 21%

176 🇲🇦 Morocco 20%

177 🇩🇯 Djibouti 19%

178 🇩🇿 Algeria 17%

179 🇪🇬 Egypt 17%

180 🇸🇾 Syria 14%

181 🇯🇴 Jordan 14%

182 🇮🇷 Iran 14%

183 🇮🇶 Iraq 11%

184 🇾🇪 Yemen 5%

185 🇦🇫 Afghanistan 5%

Note: Figures rounded and based on International Labour Organization’s estimates as of 2023.

Rank	Country	Female Labor Force Participation Rate (2023)
1	🇲🇬 Madagascar	83%
2	🇸🇧 Solomon Islands	83%
3	🇧🇮 Burundi	79%
4	🇲🇿 Mozambique	78%
5	🇹🇿 Tanzania	77%
6	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	75%
7	🇦🇴 Angola	73%
8	🇱🇷 Liberia	72%
9	🇰🇪 Kenya	72%
10	🇲🇩 Moldova	72%
11	🇪🇷 Eritrea	71%
12	🇸🇸 South Sudan	70%
13	🇮🇸 Iceland	70%
14	🇰🇵 North Korea	70%
15	🇰🇭 Cambodia	70%
16	🇻🇳 Viet Nam	69%
17	🇳🇿 New Zealand	68%
18	🇺🇬 Uganda	68%
19	🇦🇿 Azerbaijan	67%
20	🇨🇲 Cameroon	67%
21	🇨🇩 Congo	67%
22	🇵🇪 Peru	66%
23	🇧🇸 Bahamas	65%
24	🇬🇭 Ghana	65%
25	🇧🇹 Bhutan	65%
26	🇶🇦 Qatar	64%
27	🇲🇼 Malawi	64%
28	🇨🇫 Central African Republic	63%
29	🇸🇪 Sweden	63%
30	🇰🇿 Kazakhstan	63%
31	🇲🇴 Macao	63%
32	🇨🇩 DRC	63%
33	🇱🇨 St. Lucia	63%
34	🇳🇪 Niger	62%
35	🇳🇴 Norway	62%
36	🇳🇱 Netherlands	62%
37	🇸🇬 Singapore	62%
38	🇦🇺 Australia	62%
39	🇯🇲 Jamaica	61%
40	🇨🇭 Switzerland	61%
41	🇨🇦 Canada	61%
42	🇪🇪 Estonia	61%
43	🇹🇱 Timor-Leste	61%
44	🇭🇹 Haiti	61%
45	🇮🇱 Israel	61%
46	🇻🇺 Vanuatu	61%
47	🇨🇳 China	61%
48	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	60%
49	🇨🇾 Cyprus	60%
50	🇧🇴 Bolivia	60%
51	🇧🇼 Botswana	60%
52	🇮🇪 Ireland	60%
53	🇩🇰 Denmark	60%
54	🇵🇾 Paraguay	60%
55	🇧🇾 Belarus	59%
56	🇹🇭 Thailand	59%
57	🇧🇧 Barbados	59%
58	🇬🇧 UK	58%
59	🇱🇺 Luxembourg	58%
60	🇫🇮 Finland	58%
61	🇧🇫 Burkina Faso	58%
62	🇱🇸 Lesotho	58%
63	🇱🇹 Lithuania	57%
64	🇲🇹 Malta	57%
65	🇦🇹 Austria	57%
66	🇧🇯 Benin	57%
67	🇨🇮 Cote d'Ivoire	57%
68	🇺🇸 U.S.	57%
69	🇩🇪 Germany	56%
70	🇬🇲 Gambia	56%
71	🇬🇺 Guam	56%
72	🇸🇰 Slovakia	56%
73	🇹🇬 Togo	56%
74	🇦🇲 Armenia	56%
75	🇱🇦 Laos	56%
76	🇰🇷 South Korea	56%
77	🇳🇦 Namibia	56%
78	🇺🇾 Uruguay	56%
79	🇱🇻 Latvia	56%
80	🇧🇳 Brunei	55%
81	🇦🇪 UAE	55%
82	🇵🇹 Portugal	55%
83	🇷🇼 Rwanda	55%
84	🇻🇨 St. Vincent & the Grenadines	55%
85	🇯🇵 Japan	55%
86	🇷🇺 Russia	55%
87	🇬🇪 Georgia	54%
88	🇭🇺 Hungary	54%
89	🇸🇮 Slovenia	54%
90	🇰🇬 Kyrgyz Republic	54%
91	🇮🇩 Indonesia	53%
92	🇪🇨 Ecuador	53%
93	🇧🇷 Brazil	53%
94	🇦🇱 Albania	53%
95	🇫🇷 France	53%
96	🇲🇳 Mongolia	53%
97	🇳🇨 New Caledonia	53%
98	🇪🇸 Spain	53%
99	🇿🇦 South Africa	52%
100	🇭🇰 Hong Kong	52%
101	🇳🇬 Nigeria	52%
102	🇿🇲 Zambia	52%
103	🇨🇿 Czechia	52%
104	🇨🇱 Chile	52%
105	🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	52%
106	🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea	52%
107	🇲🇾 Malaysia	52%
108	🇲🇱 Mali	52%
109	🇵🇱 Poland	52%
110	🇸🇱 Sierra Leone	52%
111	🇨🇴 Colombia	51%
112	🇨🇻 Cabo Verde	51%
113	🇬🇬 Channel Islands	51%
114	🇷🇸 Serbia	51%
115	🇦🇷 Argentina	51%
116	🇧🇪 Belgium	51%
117	🇵🇦 Panama	50%
118	🇧🇿 Belize	50%
119	🇧🇬 Bulgaria	50%
120	🇭🇳 Honduras	50%
121	🇵🇫 French Polynesia	49%
122	🇲🇪 Montenegro	49%
123	🇳🇮 Nicaragua	49%
124	🇹🇲 Turkmenistan	49%
125	🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau	49%
126	🇹🇩 Chad	49%
127	🇭🇷 Croatia	48%
128	🇰🇼 Kuwait	48%
129	🇸🇿 Eswatini	47%
130	🇵🇭 Philippines	47%
131	🇲🇽 Mexico	47%
132	🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea	46%
133	🇸🇻 El Salvador	46%
134	🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago	46%
135	🇬🇷 Greece	45%
136	🇻🇮 U.S. Virgin Islands	45%
137	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	45%
138	🇸🇷 Suriname	45%
139	🇧🇭 Bahrain	44%
140	🇲🇺 Mauritius	43%
141	🇹🇴 Tonga	43%
142	🇲🇻 Maldives	43%
143	🇲🇰 North Macedonia	43%
144	🇬🇳 Guinea	42%
145	🇷🇴 Romania	42%
146	🇨🇺 Cuba	42%
147	🇲🇲 Myanmar	42%
148	🇼🇸 Samoa	41%
149	🇮🇹 Italy	41%
150	🇬🇹 Guatemala	41%
151	🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina	41%
152	🇬🇦 Gabon	40%
153	🇺🇿 Uzbekistan	40%
154	🇬🇾 Guyana	40%
155	🇻🇪 Venezuela	39%
156	🇫🇯 Fiji	39%
157	🇸🇹 Sao Tome & Principe	38%
158	🇸🇳 Senegal	38%
159	🇧🇩 Bangladesh	37%
160	🇹🇷 Türkiye	35%
161	🇱🇾 Libya	35%
162	🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia	35%
163	🇰🇲 Comoros	33%
164	🇮🇳 India	33%
165	🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	32%
166	🇴🇲 Oman	32%
167	🇵🇷 Puerto Rico	32%
168	🇹🇯 Tajikistan	32%
169	🇳🇵 Nepal	29%
170	🇸🇩 Sudan	28%
171	🇱🇧 Lebanon	28%
172	🇹🇳 Tunisia	27%
173	🇲🇷 Mauritania	26%
174	🇵🇰 Pakistan	25%
175	🇸🇴 Somalia	21%
176	🇲🇦 Morocco	20%
177	🇩🇯 Djibouti	19%
178	🇩🇿 Algeria	17%
179	🇪🇬 Egypt	17%
180	🇸🇾 Syria	14%
181	🇯🇴 Jordan	14%
182	🇮🇷 Iran	14%
183	🇮🇶 Iraq	11%
184	🇾🇪 Yemen	5%
185	🇦🇫 Afghanistan	5%

On the other hand, Afghanistan and Yemen are currently estimated to have the lowest percentage of working-aged women in their workforce at 5%.

By glancing through the bottom 20, it’s apparent that countries in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia exhibit notably lower rates of women in the workforce.

As Our World in Data points out, female labor force participation peaks in some of the richest and poorest countries in the world. But is lowest in countries with average national incomes.

More people in the workforce can contribute to economic growth and productivity. As women make up roughly half the population, their participation can be a major driver of economic expansion.