Top 50 Cities in the U.S. by Population & Rank

Updated July 21, 2023 | Infoplease Staff

The United States is one of the largest countries in the world by land mass. It’s no surprise that some of the world’s largest cities are located there. What are the top five most populous cities in the U.S.?

According to World Population Review, these are the largest cities in the United States by population in 2023.

Now, let's take a closer look at the population, history, and some important details of each of the 50 U.S. states!

1. New York City, New York (Population 8,992,908)

With a population of nearly nine million people, New York, New York is the largest city in the United States by population. The Big Apple has more than twice as many people as the number two largest city, Los Angeles. The New York City metropolitan area has an incredible 20,140,470 residents. It also has the highest population density in the U.S.

The region was originally inhabited by the Algonquin Indians and was called Lenapehoking. The first non–Native inhabitant of the region was Juan Rodriguez, a merchant of African and Portuguese descent from Santo Domingo.

From 1626 to 1664, the area was under Dutch control. The city that would become the Big Apple was called New Amsterdam. In 1664, after the British wrested control of the region from the Netherlands, the city was renamed in honor of the Duke of York.

2. Los Angeles, California (Population 3,930,586)

The City of Los Angeles is the second largest city in the United States and the largest in California. Los Angeles is the seat of Los Angeles County, which, with 9.86 million people, is the most populous county in the U.S.

Originally inhabited by the Tongva and Chumash tribes of Native Americans, Los Angeles, and surrounding areas became part of the United States in 1848 under the Treaty of Guadalupe de Hidalgo, which ended the Mexican-American War.

With a gross metropolitan product of $1 trillion, Los Angeles has the third-largest economy in the world. The Port of Los Angeles is the busiest container port in the Americas.

Although Los Angeles is the second largest city in the country, it isn’t growing very quickly. Its growth rate in 2023 was just 0.27 percent.

3. Chicago, Illinois (Population 2,761,625)

The city of Chicago is the third largest city in the United States. It’s also the seat of Cook County, the second-most populous county in the nation.

When the first Europeans came to the area, it was inhabited by the Potawatomi tribe of Native Americans. Trader Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, a person of African descent hailing from the French colony of Haiti, founded a settlement in what is now Chicago. Du Sable is considered to be the founder of the city of Chicago.

In the 1920s, the availability of jobs drew hundreds of thousands of African Americans from the southern states to Chicago, leading to the Chicago Black Renaissance, a blossoming of African American culture, art, and literature.

4. Houston, Texas (Population 2,366,119)

With a population approaching that of Chicago, Houston, Texas is the fourth most populous city in the U.S., the number one southern city for population, and the sixth most populous city in North America.

Houston has the greatest ethnic diversity of any area in Texas, and some consider it the most racially and ethnically diverse city in the U.S. The city is home to the largest African American community west of the Mississippi River and is a Mecca for Black professionals and entrepreneurs. Hispanic and Latino people make up the largest percentage of the population: 44 percent.

The Houston area is geographically diverse, as well, and includes coastal grasslands, subtropical jungle (“The Big Thicket”), forests, marshes, and swamps.

When the first Europeans arrived in the eighteenth century, the region had been home to the Karankawa and Atakapa peoples for more than 2,000 years.

5. Phoenix, Arizona (Population 1,656,892)

Phoenix, Arizona, is the largest city in Arizona by population, the fifth largest in the United States, and the most populous state capital in the U.S.

The Phoenix area, located in central Arizona, was home to the Hohokam people for approximately 2,000 years. The Hohokam tamed the harsh desert landscape by digging irrigation canals that today are the bases for the Central Arizona Project Canal, the Arizona Canal, and the Hayden-Rhodes Aqueduct. The Hohokam also had an enormous trade network that extended all the way down through what is now Central America.

The founder of the city of Phoenix was Jack Swilling, a prospector, and Confederate Civil War veteran. The Swilling Irrigation and Canal Company built canals for irrigation. This drew visitors and settlers. The city of Phoenix was officially recognized on May 4, 1868.

Other Large American Cities

Some other populous American cities include Tampa, Florida (population 399,734); Cleveland, Ohio (population 365,367); Lexington, Kentucky (population 330,601); Newark, New Jersey (population 321,872); and Lincoln, Nebraska (population 300,892).

Most Populous Cities in the U.S.

Who decides which are the most populous cities in the United States?

Every ten years, the U.S. Census Bureau conducts a voluntary survey of people in the country. The 2020 census short form included questions about:

• Race.
• Sex.
• Age.
• Household structure.
• Where people live.

Another survey, the American Community Survey, collects more detailed demographic information, such as languages spoken in a household, educational attainment, transportation usage, internet usage, and so forth.

U.S. Cities with the Highest and Lowest Population Density

The size of a population is an important number, but you can also tell a lot about a place from its population density. Population density means the average number of people living in a certain area. It’s usually expressed in terms of people per square mile or people per square kilometer.

As of 2023, the five American cities with the highest population density are:

1. New York City, New York (29,938 people per square mile).
2. Jersey City, New Jersey (20,748 people per square mile).
3. Paterson, New Jersey (19,469 people per square mile).
4. San Francisco, California (19,073 people per square mile).
5. Boston, Massachusetts (14,338 people per square mile).

By contrast, the five most sparsely populated American cities as of 2023 are:

1. Anchorage, Alaska (171 people per square mile).
2. Augusta, Georgia (675 people per square mile).
3. Chesapeake, Virginia (761 people per square mile).
4. Columbus, Georgia (979 people per square mile).
5. Huntsville, Alabama (1,052 people per square mile).

Why is this information important? Lots of reasons!

Knowing how many people live in a certain area can help governments to serve those people’s needs. It can also help governments to plan for future needs, such as transportation infrastructure, schools, hospitals, communications infrastructure, and so forth.

The Fastest and Slowest Growing Cities in the United States

Another metric that can tell us a lot is a city’s rate of growth. Some American cities are growing rapidly, particularly in the southern states. Others are growing more slowly. And the population of some cities is demonstrably shrinking.

The fastest-growing cities in the United States as of 2023 are:

1. Enterprise, Nevada (growth rate: 4.64 percent).
2. Frisco, Texas (growth rate: 3.84 percent).
3. McKinney, Texas (growth rate: 3.08 percent).
4. Kent, Washington (growth rate: 3.04 percent).
5. Irvine, California (growth rate: 2.92 percent).

Boise, Idaho is also growing quickly, with a growth rate of 1.24 percent.

The five U.S. Cities that are losing population at the highest rates are:

1. Louisville, Kentucky (growth rate: -6.10%).
2. San Juan, Puerto Rico (growth rate: -1.90%).
3. Paradise, Nevada (growth rate: -1.73%).
4. Jackson, Mississippi (growth rate: -1.32%).
5. Bayamon, Puerto Rico (growth rate: -1.28%).

U.S. Cities by Population 

The 50 largest cities in the United States by population. Some of them will come as no surprise. Others, however, just might!

Cities, States, and Populations, Oh My! 

Demographic information can reveal fascinating trends in population — not only which cities have the most people, but which have the most sparse and dense populations, which are growing fastest and slowest, and more.

Do you think you know New York? Test your knowledge with our Big Apple quiz!

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