Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents was 4.42 million people in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Arab Emirates, 1980–2020
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 United Arab Emirates is 4.42 million people, measured in 2020. That is the highest value across all 9 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 90.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Arab Emirates peaked at 4.42 million people in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0 people, in 1980.
That places United Arab Emirates 59th out of 182 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0 people | 0 people | 0 people | 2 |
| 1990s | 0 people | 0 people | 0 people | 2 |
| 2000s | 1.75 million people | 1.30 million people | 2.19 million people | 2 |
| 2010s | 3.02 million people | 2.32 million people | 3.71 million people | 2 |
| 2020s | 4.42 million people | 4.42 million people | 4.42 million people | 1 |
Countries ranked near United Arab Emirates
More reference data data for United Arab Emirates
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.7516 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 0.2042 °C (2026)
- Spring temperature anomalies 1.54 °C (2026)
- Consumer price index 123.74 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice 0 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 0.8201 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies 0.794 °C (2025)
- Competitive elections 0 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating 6 (2025)
- Free country 0 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Arab Emirates?
- Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Arab Emirates was 4.42 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 United Arab Emirates?
- The highest recorded value was 4.42 million people in 2020.
- What is the lowest number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 people in 1980.
- How does United Arab Emirates rank for number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents?
- United Arab Emirates ranks 59th 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 United Arab Emirates?
- Over the last ten years it is up 90.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this United Arab Emirates 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 — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
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.