The United Nations has predicted the world’s population to be 9.8 billion in 2050. However, that is set to soar to an astonishing 11.2 billion people by the end of the decade – so what will be the largest city in the world in 2100!
In 2010, Tokyo, Japan had the the largest city in the world with a population of 36 Million people. Compare that to the top 20 biggest cities in England which have a combined total population of only 26 Million people.
That was nearly 15 million more than Delhi, India, which had the second highest population. Fast forward 90 years you’d expect Tokyo to be one of the most populous cities cities in the world? Wrong. It probably won’t even be in the top 15 major world cities.
Tokyo’s city population is predicted to not even make it into the top 20 cities in the world. In fact, only 6 of the top 20 cities with the highest population in 2010 are predicted to still be in the top 20 by 2100. Over the next decade we will see a radical change in the 50 biggest cities in the world as the list of the most populous city shift.
Most populated cities
This research-led article has tracked the top 20 most populated cities in the world with the highest population back in 2010 and following their projected population increase or decrease over the years. If they drop out of the top 20, the city that overtakes it joins the chart and replaces it as the largest city in the world.
What are the five largest cities in the world today?
In 2022 the largest cities in the world are:
- Tokyo, Japan – the worlds most populous city
Population: 37 million - Delhi, India – the second most populous city
Population: 31.1 million - Shanghai, China
Population: 27,7 million - Sao Paulo, Brazil
Population: 22.2 million - Mexico City, Mexico
Population: 21.9 million
The Top 10 Biggest Cities by Population in 2010
- Tokyo, Japan – 36,834,000
- Delhi, India – 21,935,000
- Mexico City, Mexico – 20,132,000
- Shanghai, China – 19,980,000
- São Paulo, Brazil – 19,660,000
- Osaka, Japan – 19,492,000
- Mumbai, India – 19,422,000
- New York, United States of America – 18,365,000
- Cairo, Egypt – 16,899,000
- Beijing, China – 16,190,000
The Top 10 Biggest Cities by Population in 2025
As we move into 2025 we see the biggest US cities drop from the list of the large cities of the world.
- Tokyo, Japan – 36,400,000
- Mumbai (Bombay), India – 26,385,000
- Delhi, India – 22,498,000
- Dhaka, Bangladesh – 22,015,000
- Sao Paulo, Brazil – 21,428,000
- Mexico City, Mexico – 21,009,000
- New York City-Newark, USA – 20,628,000
- Kolkata (Calcutta), India – 20,560,000
- Shanghai, China – 19,412,000
- Karachi, Pakistan – 19,095,000
The Top 10 Biggest Cities by Population in 2050
As we move into 2050 we see a boom in the Lagos, the big city in Nigeria driven by local and global migration.
- Mumbai (Bombay), India – 42,403,631
- Delhi, India – 36,156,789
- Dhaka, Bangladesh – 35,193,184
- Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo – 35,000,361
- Kolkata (Calcutta), India – 33,042,208
- Lagos, Nigeria – 32,629,709
- Tokyo, Japan – 32,621,993
- Karachi, Pakistan – 31,696,042
- New York City-Newark, USA – 24,768,743
- Mexico City, Mexico – 24,328,738
The Top 10 Biggest Cities by Population in 2075 are expected to be:
- Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo – 58,424,142
- Mumbai, India – 57,862,345
- Lagos, Nigeria – 57,195,075
- Delhi, India – 49,338,148
- Dhaka, Bangladesh – 46,218,971
- Kolkata, India – 45,088,111
- Karachi, Pakistan – 43,373,574
- Dar Es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania – 37,484,980
- Cairo, Egypt – 32,999,203
- Manila, Philippines – 32,748,758
The Top 10 Biggest Cities by Population in 2100
- Lagos, Nigeria – 88,344,661
- Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo – 83,493,793
- Dar Es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania – 73,678,022
- Mumbai, India – 67,239,804
- Delhi, India – 57,334,134
- Khartoum, Sudan – 56,594,472
- Niamey, Niger – 56,149,130
- Dhaka, Bangladesh – 54,249,845
- Kolkata, India – 52,395,315
- Kabul, Afghanistan – 50,269,659
The Top Biggest Cities in the United Kingdom in 2021
This is even more mind blowing when you compare this to the current largest cities in the UK. These, according to the office of national statistics, combine to a measly 26,263,000 people in total.
- London – 11,120,000
- Manchester – 2,747,000
- Birmingham-Wolverhampton – 2,624,000
- Leeds-Bradford – 1,903,000
- Glasgow – 1,264,000
- Southampton-Portsmouth – 932,000
- Liverpool – 910,000
- Newcastle – 820,000Nottingham – 791,000
- Sheffield – 735,000
- Bristol – 687,000
- Belfast – 639,000
- Leicester – 555,000
- Edinburgh – 536,000
