U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Skip Header


Urban Areas Facts

United States

  • 3,573: Total number of 2010 Census urban areas in the United States
    • 486: Number of urbanized areas (UAs)
    • 3,087: Number of urban clusters (UCs)

  • 249,253,271: Total urban population in the United States
    • 219,922,123: Urbanized area (UA) population
    • 29,331,148: Urban cluster (UC) population

  • 59,492,276: Total rural population in the United States
  • 80.7%: Percent of the U.S. population that is urban


Puerto Rico

  • 19 : Total number of 2010 Census urban areas in Puerto Rico
    • 11: Number of urbanized areas (UAs)
    • 8: Number of urban clusters (UCs)

  • 3,493,256: Total urban population in Puerto Rico
    • 3,379,977: Urbanized area (UA) population
    • 113,279: Urban cluster (UC) population

  • 232,533: Total rural population in Puerto Rico
  • 93.8%: Percent of the population in Puerto Rico that is urban

Island Areas

  • 9: Total number of 2010 Census urban areas in the Island Areas
    • 0: Number of urbanized areas (UAs)
    • 9: Number of urban clusters (UCs)

  • 347,487: Total urban population in the Island Areas
    • 0: Urbanized area (UA) population
    • 347,487: Urban cluster (UC) population

  • 27,678: Total rural population in the Island Areas
  • 92.6%: Percent of the Island Area population that is urban

  • Top 3 urbanized areas have not changed since the 1950 Census when urbanized areas were first delineated
Urbanized Area Population Land Area
(square miles)
Density
New York--Newark, NY--NJ--CT 18,351,295 3,450.2 5,318.9
Los Angeles--Long Beach--Anaheim, CA 12,150,996 1,736.0 6,999.3
Chicago, IL--IN 8,608,208 2,442.7 3,524.0
Miami, FL 5,502,379 1,238.6 4,442.4
Philadelphia, PA--NJ--DE--MD 5,441,567 1,981.4 2,746.4
Dallas--Fort Worth--Arlington, TX 5,121,892 1,779.1 2,878.9
Houston, TX 4,944,332 1,660.0 2,978.5
Washington, DC--VA--MD 4,586,770 1,321.7 3,470.3
Atlanta, GA 4,515,419 2,645.4 1,706.9
Boston, MA--NH--RI 4,181,019 1,873.5 2,231.7

Top of Section

  • 9 of the 10 most densely populated urbanized areas are in the West
  • 7 of the 10 most densely populated urbanized areas are in California
  • 2,534.4 persons per square mile is the overall population density of the US urbanized areas
Urbanized Area Population Land Area
(square miles)
Density
Los Angeles--Long Beach--Anaheim, CA 12,150,996 1,736.0 6,999.3
San Francisco--Oakland, CA 3,281,212 523.6 6,266.4
San Jose, CA 1,664,496 286.0 5,820.3
Delano, CA 54,372 9.9 5,482.7
New York--Newark, NY--NJ--CT 18,351,295 3,450.2 5,318.9
Davis, CA 72,794 14.1 5,156.6
Lompoc, CA 51,509 10.7 4,815.7
Urban Honolulu, HI 802,459 170.2 4,715.6
Woodland, CA 55,513 12.2 4,550.8
Las Vegas--Henderson, NV 1,886,011 416.8 4,524.5

Top of Section

  • New York--Newark, NY--NJ--CT urbanized area: Most populous urban area with 18,351,295 people
  • Roswell, NM urban cluster: Most populous urban cluster with 49,727 people
  • Richgrove, CA urban cluster: Highest urban area and urban cluster population density with 10,016 persons per square mile
  • Los Angeles--Long Beach--Anaheim, CA urbanized area: Highest urbanized area population density with 6,999.3 persons per square mile
  • New York--Newark, NY--NJ--CT urbanized area: Largest land area at 3,450 square miles

Top of Section

  • Lake Rancho Viejo, CA urban cluster: Least populous urban area and urban cluster with 2,500 people (the minimum population for recognition as an urban area)
  • Pascagoula, MS urbanized area: Least populous urbanized area with 50,248 people
  • Centre, AL urban cluster: Lowest urban area and urban cluster population density with 363 persons per square mile
  • Hickory, NC urbanized area: Lowest urbanized area population density with 811.1 persons per square mile
  • Richgrove, CA urban cluster: Smallest land area at 0.29 square miles

Top of Section

  • Albany, OR
  • Arroyo Grande--Grover Beach, CA
  • Beckley, WV
  • Bloomsburg--Berwick, PA
  • Cape Girardeau, MO--IL
  • Carbondale, IL
  • Cartersville, GA
  • Casa Grande, AZ
  • Chambersburg, PA
  • Conway, AR
  • Daphne--Fairhope, AL
  • Delano, CA
  • East Stroudsburg, PA--NJ
  • Grand Island, NE
  • Grants Pass, OR
  • Hammond, LA
  • Homosassa Springs--Beverly Hills--Citrus Springs, FL
  • Hanover, PA
  • Hilton Head Island, SC
  • Kahului, HI
  • Lake Havasu City, AZ
  • Lexington Park--California--Chesapeake Ranch Estates, MD
  • Los Lunas, NM
  • Manhattan, KS
  • Mankato, MN
  • Midland, MI
  • New Bern, NC
  • San Marcos, TX
  • Sebring--Avon Park, FL
  • Sierra Vista, AZ
  • Staunton--Waynesboro, VA
  • Walla Walla, WA--OR
  • Watertown, NY
  • West Bend, WI
  • Williamsburg, VA
  • Woodland, CA

Top of Section

Urban Areas

  • 80.7%: Percent of the US population living within urban areas
  • 93.8%: Percent of the population in Puerto Rico living within urban areas
  • 92.6%: Percent of the Island Area population that is urban
  • 12.1%: Urban population growth between 2000 and 2010.
    • 9.7%: U.S. total population growth between 2000 and 2010

Urbanized Areas

 

  • 486: Number of urbanized areas
  • 16: Number of urbanized areas with populations of 2,500,000 or more
  • 41: Number of urbanized areas with populations of 1,000,000 or more
  • 179: Number of urbanized areas with populations of 200,000 or more
  • 36: Number of new urbanized areas
  • 2,534.4 persons per square mile: Overall urbanized area population density in the U.S.
  • 71.2%: Percent of U.S. population living within urbanized areas
  • 90.7%: Percent of population in Puerto Rico living within urbanized areas

 

Urban, Urbanized Area, Urban Cluster, and Rural Population, 2010 and 2000: United States

Area Number of 2010
Urban Areas
Population Percentage of Total Population
2010 2000 2010 2000
United States 3,573 308,745,538 281,421,906

Urban
249,253,271 222,360,539 80.7% 79.0%
Urbanized Areas 486 219,922,123 192,323,824 71.2% 68.3%
Urban Clusters 3,087 29,331,148 30,036,715 9.5% 10.7%
Rural
59,492,267 59,061,367 19.3% 21.0%

Urban, Urbanized Area, Urban Cluster, and Rural Population, 2010 and 2000: Puerto Rico

Area Number of 2010
Urban Areas
Population Percentage of Total Population
2010 2000 2010 2000
Puerto Rico 19 3,725,789 3,808,610    
Urban   3,493,256 3,590,994 93.8% 94.3%
Urbanized Areas 11 3,379,977 3,476,691 90.7% 91.3%
Urban Clusters 8 113,279 114,303 3.0% 3.0%
Rural   232,533 217,616 6.2% 5.6%

Page Last Revised - October 8, 2021
Is this page helpful?
Thumbs Up Image Yes Thumbs Down Image No
NO THANKS
255 characters maximum 255 characters maximum reached
Thank you for your feedback.
Comments or suggestions?

Top

Back to Header