What is the largest city in the world?
By a 2025 United Nations estimate, Jakarta in Indonesia is the world's largest city, with about 42 million people, followed by Dhaka and Tokyo. Rankings depend on how city areas are defined.
For many years, Tokyo was listed as the world's largest city, with about 37 million people in its metropolitan area. In November 2025, a UN report on world urbanization used a new, consistent method to define city boundaries. It placed Jakarta first, with about 42 million, Dhaka in Bangladesh second, with about 37 million, and Tokyo third, at about 33 million.
City size rankings vary because some measure only the official city limits, while others include surrounding suburbs and connected urban areas. Under official city limits, Chongqing in China is sometimes called the largest, but much of its area is rural.
Growing megacities
A megacity has more than 10 million people. The UN counted 33 megacities in 2025, most of them in Asia. Fast-growing cities like Dhaka, Lagos and Kinshasa are expected to keep growing, while Tokyo's population is slowly shrinking.
Did You Know?
More than half of the world's population now lives in cities, compared with only about 30 percent in 1950.