How does United Kingdom rank for number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents?

United Kingdom ranks 22nd 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 Kingdom?

Over the last ten years it is up 20.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.

Where does this United Kingdom 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.

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

Name: Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Kingdom
Creator: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

United Kingdom: Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents was 17.28 million people in 2020. ▬ Flat

Latest (2020)

17.28 million people

World rank

22nd

of 182 countries

All-time high

17.28 million people

in 2020

All-time low

12.59 million people

in 1990

Years of data

1950–2020

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

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 Kingdom is 17.28 million people, measured in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.

That represents a change of up 20.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Kingdom peaked at 17.28 million people in 2020 and was at its lowest, 12.59 million people, in 1990.

United Kingdom ranks 22nd of 182 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1950s	14.18 million people	13.67 million people	14.69 million people	2
1960s	14.98 million people	14.98 million people	14.99 million people	2
1970s	14.42 million people	14.23 million people	14.60 million people	2
1980s	13.17 million people	12.59 million people	13.75 million people	2
1990s	12.70 million people	12.59 million people	12.81 million people	2
2000s	13.32 million people	13.09 million people	13.55 million people	2
2010s	14.83 million people	14.38 million people	15.28 million people	2
2020s	17.28 million people	17.28 million people	17.28 million people	1

Countries ranked near United Kingdom

19 Colombia 17.92 million people compare
20 South Africa 17.85 million people compare
21 Argentina 17.55 million people compare
23 Thailand 17.25 million people compare
24 Saudi Arabia 15.00 million people compare
25 Taiwan 14.82 million people compare

See the full ranking of 182 places →

More reference data data for United Kingdom

Spring temperature anomalies 1.37 °C (2026)
Summer temperature anomalies 2.09 °C (2026)
Temperature anomalies by month -0.4402 °C (2026)
Winter temperature anomalies 1.74 °C (2025)
Consumer price index 153.13 2010 = 100 (2025)
Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
Autumn temperature anomalies -0.1504 °C (2025)
Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Free country 2 (2025)
Democracy 7 (2025)

All data for United Kingdom →

Frequently asked questions

What is number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Kingdom?: Number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents in United Kingdom was 17.28 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 Kingdom?: The highest recorded value was 17.28 million people in 2020.
What is the lowest number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents recorded in United Kingdom?: The lowest recorded value was 12.59 million people in 1990.
How does United Kingdom rank for number of people living in cities with more than 1 million residents?: United Kingdom ranks 22nd 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 Kingdom?: Over the last ten years it is up 20.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this United Kingdom 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: 07 August 2026

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.