which cities are rising, and which are fading
50 cities, six rankings, measured the same way everywhere. No surveys. No paid places.
Where cities are growing fastest
Population growth, 2015 to 2025, in each city’s dense core. · Estimate
- 1 Luanda Angola 60%
- 2 Dar es Salaam Tanzania 50%
- 3 Addis Ababa Ethiopia 47%
- 5 Kinshasa DR Congo 37%
- 7 Nairobi Kenya 31%
- 8 Abidjan Côte d'Ivoire 30%
- 9 Johannesburg South Africa 30%
- 22 Khartoum Sudan 15%
- 23 Lagos Nigeria 15%
Source: UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025 (cities by the Degree of Urbanisation) · 2025 data. The UN counts each city’s dense core (areas above 1,500 people per km²), which can shrink while suburbs grow; for Chengdu and Mexico City, national census figures differ. Hong Kong shows its largest UN city, Tamar. 2025 values are UN estimates.
Measured, never opinion · every number traceable · nobody can buy a rank.
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