The Largest Metro Areas in the US by Population
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The New York metro area holds 20.1 million people, which is more than the next two combined and roughly the population of New York State plus Connecticut. It has been the country's largest metro since the Census Bureau started measuring metros, and nothing on the list is close to catching it.
Below are the 25 largest metro areas in the United States, using the Census Bureau's July 2025 population estimates.
The 25 largest metro areas
| Rank | Metro area | 2025 population | Since 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York, NY | 20,112,448 | +30,513 |
| 2 | Los Angeles, CA | 12,844,441 | -356,557 |
| 3 | Chicago, IL | 9,434,123 | -15,228 |
| 4 | Dallas, TX | 8,477,157 | +839,770 |
| 5 | Houston, TX | 7,904,627 | +754,985 |
| 6 | Atlanta, GA | 6,482,182 | +377,379 |
| 7 | Washington, DC | 6,465,724 | +187,182 |
| 8 | Miami, FL | 6,391,072 | +252,739 |
| 9 | Philadelphia, PA | 6,329,118 | +84,067 |
| 10 | Phoenix, AZ | 5,228,938 | +383,106 |
| 11 | Boston, MA | 5,034,221 | +92,589 |
| 12 | Riverside, CA | 4,769,007 | +169,168 |
| 13 | San Francisco, CA | 4,630,041 | -118,967 |
| 14 | Detroit, MI | 4,390,913 | -1,128 |
| 15 | Seattle, WA | 4,161,883 | +143,121 |
| 16 | Minneapolis, MN | 3,790,295 | +100,034 |
| 17 | Tampa, FL | 3,418,895 | +243,620 |
| 18 | San Diego, CA | 3,282,248 | -16,386 |
| 19 | Denver, CO | 3,092,037 | +128,216 |
| 20 | Orlando, FL | 2,957,672 | +284,296 |
| 21 | Charlotte, NC | 2,938,830 | +278,501 |
| 22 | Baltimore, MD | 2,857,781 | +13,271 |
| 23 | St. Louis, MO | 2,814,421 | -5,832 |
| 24 | San Antonio, TX | 2,813,140 | +254,997 |
| 25 | Austin, TX | 2,620,945 | +337,574 |
What a metro area actually is
A metro area, formally a metropolitan statistical area, is a county or group of counties tied to an urban core by commuting. That's why New York's metro reaches into New Jersey and Dallas covers a dozen counties beyond the city line. It's a labor market, not a city, and it's the reason metro populations run several times larger than the city populations people usually have in mind. The city of Dallas has about 1.3 million residents; its metro has 8.5 million.
The boundaries are set by the Office of Management and Budget and redrawn every few years, so a metro can gain population on paper by adding counties.
Five metros in the top 25 lost people
Los Angeles is down 356,557 residents since 2020, the largest decline of any metro in the country. San Francisco lost 118,967, San Diego 16,386, St. Louis 5,832, and Detroit 1,128. Chicago is down 15,228 as well, which makes six.
New York gained 30,513 over five years, a rounding error on a base of 20 million.
Texas added 2.2 million people across four metros
Dallas grew by 839,770 since 2020 and Houston by 754,985. Add San Antonio (+254,997) and Austin (+337,574) and the four Texas metros in this list gained about 2.19 million people between them, which is more than the entire population of New Mexico.
Austin grew fastest in percentage terms among the top 25, up 14.8 percent from 2,283,371. It sits 25th by size and first by growth rate. We covered the Texas metro race in how Houston overtook Dallas.
Florida placed three metros in the top 20, with Miami at 6.39 million, Tampa at 3.42 million and Orlando at 2.96 million. Orlando added 284,296 people, more than Washington did on twice the base.
You can look up any of the 925 metro and micropolitan areas the Census Bureau tracks, or compare two of them with the compare tool.
Sources
Population figures are July 1, 2025 and July 1, 2020 estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025. Metro area definitions come from the Office of Management and Budget delineation files.
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What is the largest metro area in the United States?
The New York metro area is the largest with 20.1 million residents as of July 2025, more than the Los Angeles and Chicago metros combined. It has been the country's largest metro area since the Census Bureau began measuring them.
What is the difference between a city and a metro area?
A metro area, formally a metropolitan statistical area, is a county or group of counties tied to an urban core by commuting patterns, so it is a labor market rather than a city. That is why the city of Dallas has about 1.3 million residents while its metro area has 8.5 million.
Which metro areas are losing population?
Six of the 25 largest metros have lost residents since 2020: Los Angeles (down 356,557), San Francisco (down 118,967), San Diego (down 16,386), Chicago (down 15,228), St. Louis (down 5,832), and Detroit (down 1,128).
