Delhi was the largest city in terms of number of inhabitants in India in 2023.The capital city was estimated to house nearly 33 million people, with Mumbai ranking second that year. India's population estimate was 1.4 billion, ahead of China that same year.

Population in largest city in India was reported at 33807403 in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. India - Population in largest city - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on June of 2025.

The population in New Delhi was approximately **** million, the most among the leading Indian cities in 2019. Mumbai and Kolkata rounded up the three most populated cities across the country that year.

Population in the largest city (% of urban population) in India was reported at 6.3201 % in 2024, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. India - Population in the largest city - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Japan’s largest city, greater Tokyo, had a staggering 37.19 million inhabitants in 2023, making it the most populous city across the Asia-Pacific region. India had the second largest city after Japan with a population consisting of approximately 33 million inhabitants. Contrastingly, approximately 410 thousand inhabitants populated Papua New Guinea's largest city in 2023. A megacity regionNot only did Japan and India have the largest cities throughout the Asia-Pacific region but they were among the three most populated cities worldwide in 2023. Interestingly, over half on the world’s megacities were situated in the Asia-Pacific region. However, being home to more than half of the world’s population, it does not seem surprising that by 2025 it is expected that more than two thirds of the megacities across the globe will be located in the Asia Pacific region. Other megacities are also expected to emerge within the Asia-Pacific region throughout the next decade. There have even been suggestions that Indonesia’s Jakarta and its conurbation will overtake Greater Tokyo in terms of population size by 2030. Increasing populationsIncreased populations in megacities can be down to increased economic activity. As more countries across the Asia-Pacific region have made the transition from agriculture to industry, the population has adjusted accordingly. Thus, more regions have experienced higher shares of urban populations. However, as many cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Seoul have an aging population, this may have an impact on their future population sizes, with these Asian regions estimated to have significant shares of the population being over 65 years old by 2035.

This horizontal bar chart displays male population (people) by capital city using the aggregation sum in India. The data is about countries per year.

In India, the share of the population that earned at least the equivalent of the highest ** percent of global income earners as of 2022 in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms was ** percent. Hyderabad topped the list with the highest share of middle-class and above category of consumers. Cities from south India topped the list with the first four ranks, followed by the national capital, Delhi.

Census: Population: City: Mumbai data was reported at 12,442.373 Person th in 03-01-2011. This records a decrease from the previous number of 16,368.000 Person th for 03-01-2001. Census: Population: City: Mumbai data is updated decadal, averaging 12,596.000 Person th from Mar 1991 (Median) to 03-01-2011, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 16,368.000 Person th in 03-01-2001 and a record low of 12,442.373 Person th in 03-01-2011. Census: Population: City: Mumbai data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAB004: Census: Population: by Selected Cities.

Census: Population: City: Jalandhar data was reported at 862.886 Person th in 03-01-2011. This records an increase from the previous number of 714.000 Person th for 03-01-2001. Census: Population: City: Jalandhar data is updated decadal, averaging 714.000 Person th from Mar 1991 (Median) to 03-01-2011, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 862.886 Person th in 03-01-2011 and a record low of 510.000 Person th in 03-01-1991. Census: Population: City: Jalandhar data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAB004: Census: Population: by Selected Cities.

This horizontal bar chart displays urban population (people) by capital city using the aggregation sum in India. The data is about countries per year.

It is estimated that more than 8 billion people live on Earth and the population is likely to hit more than 9 billion by 2050. Approximately 55 percent of Earth’s human population currently live in areas classified as urban. That number is expected to grow by 2050 to 68 percent, according to the United Nations (UN).The largest cities in the world include Tōkyō, Japan; New Delhi, India; Shanghai, China; México City, Mexico; and São Paulo, Brazil. Each of these cities classifies as a megacity, a city with more than 10 million people. The UN estimates the world will have 43 megacities by 2030.Most cities' populations are growing as people move in for greater economic, educational, and healthcare opportunities. But not all cities are expanding. Those cities whose populations are declining may be experiencing declining fertility rates (the number of births is lower than the number of deaths), shrinking economies, emigration, or have experienced a natural disaster that resulted in fatalities or forced people to leave the region.This Global Cities map layer contains data published in 2018 by the Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA). It shows urban agglomerations. The UN DESA defines an urban agglomeration as a continuous area where population is classified at urban levels (by the country in which the city resides) regardless of what local government systems manage the area. Since not all places record data the same way, some populations may be calculated using the city population as defined by its boundary and the metropolitan area. If a reliable estimate for the urban agglomeration was unable to be determined, the population of the city or metropolitan area is used.Data Citation: United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. World Urbanization Prospects: The 2018 Revision. Statistical Papers - United Nations (ser. A), Population and Vital Statistics Report, 2019, https://doi.org/10.18356/b9e995fe-en.

In 2022, the union territory of Delhi had the highest urban population density of over 18 thousand persons per square kilometer. While the rural population density was highest in union territory of Puducherry, followed by the state of Bihar.

Census: Population: City: Mysore data was reported at 1,014.227 Person th in 03-01-2011. This records an increase from the previous number of 786.000 Person th for 03-01-2001. Census: Population: City: Mysore data is updated decadal, averaging 786.000 Person th from Mar 1991 (Median) to 03-01-2011, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,014.227 Person th in 03-01-2011 and a record low of 653.000 Person th in 03-01-1991. Census: Population: City: Mysore data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAB004: Census: Population: by Selected Cities.

As of 2025, Tokyo-Yokohama in Japan was the largest world urban agglomeration, with 37 million people living there. Delhi ranked second with more than 34 million, with Shanghai in third with more than 30 million inhabitants.

Census: Population: City: Dhanbad data was reported at 1,162.472 Person th in 03-01-2011. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,064.000 Person th for 03-01-2001. Census: Population: City: Dhanbad data is updated decadal, averaging 1,064.000 Person th from Mar 1991 (Median) to 03-01-2011, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,162.472 Person th in 03-01-2011 and a record low of 815.000 Person th in 03-01-1991. Census: Population: City: Dhanbad data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAB004: Census: Population: by Selected Cities.

Census: Population: City: Delhi data was reported at 16,368.899 Person th in 03-01-2011. This records an increase from the previous number of 12,791.000 Person th for 03-01-2001. Census: Population: City: Delhi data is updated decadal, averaging 12,791.000 Person th from Mar 1991 (Median) to 03-01-2011, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 16,368.899 Person th in 03-01-2011 and a record low of 8,419.000 Person th in 03-01-1991. Census: Population: City: Delhi data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAB004: Census: Population: by Selected Cities.

Goal 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainableHalf of humanity – 3.5 billion people – lives in cities today. By 2030, almost 60% of the world’s population will live in urban areas.828 million people live in slums today and the number keeps rising.The world’s cities occupy just 2% of the Earth’s land, but account for 60 – 80% of energy consumption and 75% of carbon emissions. Rapid urbanization is exerting pressure on fresh water supplies, sewage, the living environment, and public health. But the high density of cities can bring efficiency gains and technological innovation while reducing resource and energy consumption.Cities have the potential to either dissipate the distribution of energy or optimise their efficiency by reducing energy consumption and adopting green – energy systems. For instance, Rizhao, China has turned itself into a solar – powered city; in its central districts, 99% of households already use solar water heaters.68% of India’s total population lives in rural areas (2013-14).By 2030, India is expected to be home to 6 mega-cities with populations above 10 million. Currently 17% of India’s urban population lives in slums.This map layer is offered by Esri India, for ArcGIS Online subscribers, If you have any questions or comments, please let us know via content@esri.in.

This horizontal bar chart displays urban population living in areas where elevation is below 5 meters (% of total population) by capital city using the aggregation average, weighted by population in India. The data is about countries per year.

Chart and table of population level and growth rate for the Mumbai, India metro area from 1950 to 2025.

As per the Census data dated 2011, the slum dwellers population in Mumbai was the highest among all other major metropolitan cities of India, at around ************. Hyderabad and Delhi followed it. A total of about ** million people were estimated to be living in slums across the country.