Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Poland

Poland: Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents was 1.86 million people in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
1.86 million people
World rank
92nd
of 182 countries
All-time high
2.75 million people
in 1990
All-time low
0 people
in 1950
Years of data
15
1950–2020

Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Poland, 1950–2020

01.0M2.0M3.0M1950198520201950: 0 people1955: 0 people1960: 1.1M people1965: 1.2M people1970: 2.3M people1975: 2.5M people1980: 2.7M people1985: 2.7M people1990: 2.7M people1995: 2.7M people2000: 2.7M people2005: 1.7M people2010: 1.7M people2015: 1.8M people2020: 1.9M people

Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

The most recent figure for number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Poland is 1.86 million people, measured in 2020.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 7.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Poland peaked at 2.75 million people in 1990 and was at its lowest, 0 people, in 1950.

That places Poland 92nd out of 182 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 0 people 0 people 0 people 2
1960s 1.17 million people 1.12 million people 1.22 million people 2
1970s 2.42 million people 2.33 million people 2.50 million people 2
1980s 2.70 million people 2.68 million people 2.72 million people 2
1990s 2.74 million people 2.73 million people 2.75 million people 2
2000s 2.22 million people 1.71 million people 2.73 million people 2
2010s 1.77 million people 1.74 million people 1.79 million people 2
2020s 1.86 million people 1.86 million people 1.86 million people 1

Countries ranked near Poland

  1. 89 Romania 1.93 million people compare
  2. 90 Zimbabwe 1.88 million people compare
  3. 91 Portugal 1.86 million people compare
  4. 93 Haiti 1.85 million people compare
  5. 94 Sierra Leone 1.77 million people compare
  6. 95 Liberia 1.77 million people compare

See the full ranking of 182 places →

More reference data data for Poland

All data for Poland →

Frequently asked questions

What is number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Poland?
Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in Poland was 1.86 million people in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Poland?
The highest recorded value was 2.75 million people in 1990.
What is the lowest number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in Poland?
The lowest recorded value was 0 people in 1950.
How does Poland rank for number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents?
Poland ranks 92nd out of 182 countries with data for 2020.
Is number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents rising or falling in Poland?
Over the last ten years it is up 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Poland data come from?
The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents
Unit
people
Source
European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
182 places, 2,532 data points, 1950–2020
Last refreshed

Total population living in cities with 1 million or more people. City boundaries are defined using a consistent global approach based on satellite imagery and population data.