In 2024, Madrid was the city with the most inhabitants in Spain. In that year, more than 3.42 million people lived in the city. Barcelona was the second-largest city with 1.69 million residents.

Madrid was the largest city in Spain in 2024, with around 3.4 million inhabitants. Barcelona followed second, with nearly 1.7 million people residing there. The most populated city in the Spanish islands that year was Palma de Mallorca.

Spain ES: Population in Largest City: as % of Urban Population data was reported at 17.171 % in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 17.008 % for 2016. Spain ES: Population in Largest City: as % of Urban Population data is updated yearly, averaging 15.595 % from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2017, with 58 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 17.171 % in 2017 and a record low of 14.326 % in 1960. Spain ES: Population in Largest City: as % of Urban Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Spain – Table ES.World Bank: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Population in largest city is the percentage of a country's urban population living in that country's largest metropolitan area.; ; United Nations, World Urbanization Prospects.; Weighted average;

In 2024, Barcelona received the largest number of international tourists staying at hotel establishments in Spain, with nearly *************. The Spanish capital followed, with a little almost *** million foreign hotel guests.

Population in largest city in Spain was reported at 6783241 in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Spain - Population in largest city - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Population in the largest city (% of urban population) in Spain was reported at 16.99 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Spain - Population in the largest city - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Censo de Población: Population by year of arrival in Spain, year of arrival in the municipality, sex, age (major groups) and nationality (Spanish/foreign) (Provincial capitals and main cities). Annual. Municipalities.

ES: Population in Largest City data was reported at 6,403,902.000 Person in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 6,312,017.000 Person for 2016. ES: Population in Largest City data is updated yearly, averaging 4,396,021.500 Person from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2017, with 58 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6,403,902.000 Person in 2017 and a record low of 2,467,926.000 Person in 1960. ES: Population in Largest City data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Spain – Table ES.World Bank: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Population in largest city is the urban population living in the country's largest metropolitan area.; ; United Nations, World Urbanization Prospects.; ;

In 2025, approximately 23 million people lived in the São Paulo metropolitan area, making it the biggest in Latin America and the Caribbean and the sixth most populated in the world. The homonymous state of São Paulo was also the most populous federal entity in the country. The second place for the region was Mexico City with 22.75 million inhabitants. Brazil's cities Brazil is home to two large metropolises, only counting the population within the city limits, São Paulo had approximately 11.45 million inhabitants, and Rio de Janeiro around 6.21 million inhabitants. It also contains a number of smaller, but well known cities such as Brasília, Salvador, Belo Horizonte and many others, which report between 2 and 3 million inhabitants each. As a result, the country's population is primarily urban, with nearly 88 percent of inhabitants living in cities. Mexico City Mexico City's metropolitan area ranks sevenths in the ranking of most populated cities in the world. Founded over the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan in 1521 after the Spanish conquest as the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, the city still stands as one of the most important in Latin America. Nevertheless, the preeminent economic, political, and cultural position of Mexico City has not prevented the metropolis from suffering the problems affecting the rest of the country, namely, inequality and violence. Only in 2023, the city registered a crime incidence of 52,723 reported cases for every 100,000 inhabitants and around 24 percent of the population lived under the poverty line.

Graph and download economic data for Geographical Outreach: Number of Branches in 3 Largest Cities, Excluding Headquarters, for Credit Unions and Financial Cooperatives for Spain (ESPFCBODULNUM) from 2004 to 2015 about branches, credit unions, Spain, financial, and depository institutions.

In 1500, the largest city was Paris, with an estimated 225 thousand inhabitants, almost double the population of the second-largest city, Naples. As in 1330, Venice and Milan remain the third and fourth largest cities in Western Europe, however Genoa's population almost halved from 1330 until 1500, as it was struck heavily by the bubonic plague in the mid-1300s. In lists prior to this, the largest cities were generally in Spain and Italy, however, as time progressed, the largest populations could be found more often in Italy and France. The year 1500 is around the beginning of what we now consider modern history, a time that saw the birth of many European empires and inter-continental globalization.

This statistic ranks Spanish cities by the number of concerts performed by international artists in 2019. Madrid held the first position, with a total number of 10 performances that year, followed by Barcelona, which housed 7 international artists' or bands' performances in 2019. Other cities that international musicians chose for their shows included Seville or Valencia, with a number of 4 concerts and 3 concerts respectively.

Avg Housing Price: Free Market: Barcelona data was reported at 3,300.100 EUR/sq m in Sep 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 3,297.300 EUR/sq m for Jun 2018. Avg Housing Price: Free Market: Barcelona data is updated quarterly, averaging 3,071.100 EUR/sq m from Mar 2005 (Median) to Sep 2018, with 55 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 3,950.200 EUR/sq m in Jun 2008 and a record low of 2,385.200 EUR/sq m in Mar 2014. Avg Housing Price: Free Market: Barcelona data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Public Works. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Spain – Table ES.P003: Housing Prices: Free Market: by Region and Major City.

Table of INEBase Population by year of arrival in Spain, year of arrival in the municipality, sex, age (large groups) and country of birth (Spain/foreign) (Provincial capitals and main cities). Annual. Municipalities. Censo de Población

While Spain’s population has increased slightly since the year 2000, the share of the rural and urban populations has remained relatively constant, with Spain being a highly urban country. This consistently high urbanization is a consequence of both economic and social factors. The Spanish wealth is generated in the cities to a large extent Two thirds of Spain’s economic output, as divided across economic sectors, comes from the service sector, with only ***** percent originating from agriculture. Naturally, service-based economies are easiest when people live closely, while agricultural practices need more land, and thus a rural population. Of course, this also brings economic costs, such as the high living and housing costs in Madrid. What draws people into cities? Social factors also drive people to cities. For some, it is being closer to family or culture, such as art museums. For others, it is finding a large city with green spaces, like Madrid. For others, it is the opportunity to watch a game in a world-class soccer stadium, perhaps FC Barcelona. These and other factors continue to keep Spaniards in their cities.

Avg Housing Price: Free Market: More than 5 Years Old: Alicante data was reported at 1,122.200 EUR/sq m in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,101.400 EUR/sq m for Dec 2017. Avg Housing Price: Free Market: More than 5 Years Old: Alicante data is updated quarterly, averaging 1,080.400 EUR/sq m from Mar 2010 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 33 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,461.800 EUR/sq m in Jun 2010 and a record low of 1,035.000 EUR/sq m in Mar 2014. Avg Housing Price: Free Market: More than 5 Years Old: Alicante data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Public Works. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Spain – Table ES.P003: Housing Prices: Free Market: by Region and Major City.

Avg Housing Price: Free Market: More than 5 Years Old data was reported at 1,559.400 EUR/sq m in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,550.700 EUR/sq m for Dec 2017. Avg Housing Price: Free Market: More than 5 Years Old data is updated quarterly, averaging 1,517.500 EUR/sq m from Mar 2010 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 33 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,835.500 EUR/sq m in Mar 2010 and a record low of 1,445.100 EUR/sq m in Sep 2014. Avg Housing Price: Free Market: More than 5 Years Old data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Public Works. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Spain – Table ES.P003: Housing Prices: Free Market: by Region and Major City.

Censo de Población: Population by previous residence, sex, age (big groups) and country of birth (Spain/foreign) (Provincial capitals and main cities). Annual. Municipalities.

Avg Housing Price: Free Market: Less than 5 Years Old: Badajoz data was reported at 1,155.800 EUR/sq m in Mar 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,138.600 EUR/sq m for Mar 2016. Avg Housing Price: Free Market: Less than 5 Years Old: Badajoz data is updated quarterly, averaging 1,385.700 EUR/sq m from Mar 2010 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 19 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,617.400 EUR/sq m in Jun 2010 and a record low of 1,097.500 EUR/sq m in Dec 2013. Avg Housing Price: Free Market: Less than 5 Years Old: Badajoz data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Ministry of Public Works. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Spain – Table ES.P003: Housing Prices: Free Market: by Region and Major City.

The database is one of the results of the project "Metropolitan Governance in Spain: Institutionalization and Models" (METROGOV, 2020-23), funded by the National R&D Plan 2019 of the Ministry of Science and Innovation (PID2019-106931GA-I00). Directed by Professor Tomàs, the project wants to understand the building and definition of models of metropolitan governance in Spain. There is no comprehensive work based on a common methodology that address this topic, this is why the METROGOV project seeks to cover this gap in the literature and the research.

The first specific goal of the project was to create a database of metropolitan institutions in Spain, including hard forms like metropolitan governments, metropolitan sectorial agencies and consortiums as well as soft forms as metropolitan strategic plans. The database provides an updated and rigorous portrait of the institutional thickness of urban agglomerations, gathering up to 384 metropolitan cooperation instruments in the Spanish functional areas. In other words, it is a picture of the institutional reality of Spanish urban agglomerations. This database provides precious information about the model of metropolitan governance, the municipalities involved and the sectors with most and less institutionalization.

As in Spain there is not an official or statistical definition of metropolitan areas, the project departed from the concept of Functional Urban Areas (FUA), considered as “densely inhabited city and a less densely populated commuting zone whose labour market is highly integrated with the city” (Eurostat). According to this definition, the commuting zone contains the surrounding travel-to-work areas of a city where at least 15 % of employed residents are working in a city. In the case of Spain, we find 45 big FUA, where the central city has more than 100.000 inhabitants. The database was structured considering these 45 Spanish FUAs, and it was necessary that at least 3 municipalities participated in the metropolitan cooperation tools.

In the grid, you will find the 384 instruments of metropolitan cooperation following different criteria. First of all, the models of metropolitan governance, from hard to soft: metropolitan government, metropolitan sectoral agency, “mancomunidad”, consortium, public or public-private company, territorial plan, sectoral plan, comarca, association of municipalities, strategic plan, European project, working group. Each instrument is also classified according to the subject of cooperation: transport, waste, water, housing, urbanism, etc. Other complementary information is added, such as: the year of creation; number and names of municipalities that are part of the entity; percentage of territory covered by this tool, etc.

A book has been recently published with the results of the project: Tomàs, M. (2023) (ed.). Metrópolis sin gobierno. La anomalía española en Europa. València: Tirant lo Blanch.