This list ranks European cities by population within city limits. The largest cities in Europe have official populations of over one million inhabitants within their city boundaries. These rankings are based on populations contained within city administrative boundaries, as opposed to urban areas or metropolitan areas, which necessarily have larger populations than the cities at their core.
The limits of a city proper can differ greatly from the size of the city's urban area, so the figures in this list may not give an accurate view of the comparative population of different urban areas and should be treated with caution. For example, the Paris metropolitan area is the second most populous in Europe, but the strict definition of the administrative limits of the City of Paris results in a far lower population.
Largest cities
Capital cities| City | Country | Official population | Date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Istanbul |  Turkey
|
15,655,924 | 31 Dec 2023 | |
| Moscow |  Russia
|
13,149,803 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| London |  United Kingdom
|
8,866,180 | 30 Jun 2022 | |
| Saint Petersburg | Russia
|
5,597,763 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Berlin |  Germany
|
3,782,202 | 31 Dec 2023 | |
| Madrid |  Spain
|
3,416,771 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Kyiv |  Ukraine
|
2,952,301 | 1 Jan 2022 | |
| Rome |  Italy
|
2,751,747 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Baku |  Azerbaijan
|
2,344,900 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Paris |  France
|
2,087,577 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Vienna |  Austria
|
2,018,653 | 1 Jul 2024 | |
| Minsk |  Belarus
|
1,992,862 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Hamburg | Germany
|
1,910,160 | 31 Dec 2023 | |
| Warsaw |  Poland
|
1,862,402 | 30 Jun 2024 | |
| Bucharest |  Romania
|
1,719,958 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Barcelona | Spain
|
1,702,547 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Budapest |  Hungary
|
1,686,222 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Belgrade |  Serbia
|
1,683,229 | 1 Jan 2023 | |
| Munich | Germany
|
1,505,814 | 30 Sep 2023 | |
| Kharkiv | Ukraine
|
1,421,225 | 1 Jan 2022 | |
| Prague |  Czech Republic
|
1,384,732 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Milan | Italy
|
1,371,499 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Kazan | Russia
|
1,318,604 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Sofia |  Bulgaria
|
1,286,965 | 31 Dec 2023 | |
| Tbilisi |  Georgia
|
1,258,526 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Nizhny Novgorod | Russia
|
1,204,985 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Ufa | Russia
|
1,163,304 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Samara | Russia
|
1,158,952 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Birmingham | United Kingdom
|
1,157,603 | 30 Jun 2022 | |
| Rostov-on-Don | Russia
|
1,140,487 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Krasnodar | Russia
|
1,138,654 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Yerevan |  Armenia
|
1,127,000 | 1 Jul 2024 | |
| Cologne | Germany
|
1,086,463 | 30 Jun 2024 | |
| Voronezh | Russia
|
1,046,425 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Perm | Russia
|
1,026,908 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Volgograd | Russia
|
1,018,898 | 1 Jan 2024 | |
| Odesa | Ukraine
|
1,010,537 | 1 Jan 2022 |
Map
IstanbulMoscowLondonSaint PetersburgBerlinMadridKyivRomeBucharestParisMinskViennaHamburgWarsawBudapestBelgradeBarcelonaMunichKharkivMilanSofiaPragueKazanNizhny NovgorodSamaraBirminghamKrasnodarRostov-on-DonUfaCologneVoronezhPermVolgogradOdesaclass=notpageimage| Locations of cities in Europe with more than 1 million inhabitants
See also
- List of urban areas in Europe
- List of metropolitan areas in Europe
- List of urban areas in the European Union
Notes
- Istanbul is a transcontinental city, with its commercial and historical centre and two-thirds of the population in Europe, the rest in Asia (see Districts of Istanbul for details).
- Istanbul total (2023) = 15,655,924
Europe (25 districts) = 10,030,990
Asia (14 districts) = 5,624,934 - Moscow is the most populous city entirely within Europe.
- Greater London, not the City of London
- ^ Continental placement may vary depending on geographic convention being followed.
References
- "The Results of Address Based Population Registration System, 2023". Turkish Statistical Institute. 6 February 2024. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
- ^ "Численность постоянного населения Российской Федерации по муниципальным образованиям на 1 января 2024 года" (in Russian). Russian Federal State Statistics Service. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
- ^ "Mid-Year Population Estimates, UK, June 2022". Office for National Statistics. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
- "Bevölkerung" (in German). Amt für Statistik Berlin-Brandenburg. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- ^ "Municipal breakdown". Instituto Nacional de Estadística. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- ^ "Number of Present Population of Ukraine, as of January 1" (PDF). State Statistics Service of Ukraine. 2022. pp. 35–47. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
- ^ "Resident population on 1st January". Italian National Institute of Statistics. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- "Population: Administrative – territorial divisions, number and structure of population". State Statistics Committee. 5 August 2024. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
- "Estimation de la population au 1 janvier 2024" (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques. 16 January 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- "Population at beginning of year/quarter". Statistics Austria. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
- "Численность населения на 1 января 2024 г. и среднегодовая численность населения за 2023 год по Республике Беларусь в разрезе областей, районов, городов, поселков городского типа" (in Russian). National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus. 28 March 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
- "Bevölkerung: Eckzahlen" (in German). Statistisches Amt für Hamburg und Schleswig-Holstein. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- "Population. Size and structure and vital statistics in Poland by territorial division in 2024. As of 30 June (Table III)". Statistics Poland. 15 October 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- "POP105A - Usually resident population by age group and ages, sex, urban/ rural area, macroregions, development regions and counties at January 1st". National Institute of Statistics (Romania). 11 September 2024. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
- "Population by type of settlement, 1 January". Hungarian Central Statistical Office. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- "Estimates of population: Estimated population, 2023". Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
- "Einwohnerzahlen am 30. September 2023" (PDF) (in German). Bayerisches Landesamt für Statistik. December 2023. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2024". Czech Statistical Office. 17 May 2024.
- "Population by districts, municipalities, place of residence and sex". National Statistical Institute. 29 April 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
- "Population: Population by cities and boroughs, as of 1 January". National Statistics Office of Georgia. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
- "Number of De Jure Population of the Republic of Armenia as of July 1, 2024" (in English and Armenian). Statistical Committee of Armenia. p. 4. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
- "Bevölkerung nach Gemeinden" (in German). Statistisches Landesamt Nordrhein-Westfalen. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
| World's largest cities | |
|---|---|
| City proper | |
| Metropolitan area | |
| Urban area/agglomeration | |
| Historical | |
| Related articles | |
