China vs India: Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million
China
460.16 million
in 2025
India
248.30 million
in 2025
China rank
1st
India rank
2nd
Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million over time
- China
- India
How they compare
China currently reports 460.16 million against 248.30 million in India, a difference of 211.86 million.
That makes China's figure about 1.9 times India's.
Across all 66 years both countries report, China has been ahead every year.
China ranks 1st and India ranks 2nd of 121 countries.
China has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | India | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 59.44 million | 39.85 million | 19.59 million | China |
| 1970s | 70.72 million | 56.69 million | 14.03 million | China |
| 1980s | 94.82 million | 80.52 million | 14.29 million | China |
| 1990s | 155.10 million | 111.13 million | 43.98 million | China |
| 2000s | 256.98 million | 147.52 million | 109.45 million | China |
| 2010s | 354.14 million | 190.73 million | 163.41 million | China |
| 2020s | 435.61 million | 233.90 million | 201.71 million | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, China or India?
- China, at 460.16 million against 248.30 million in India as of 2025.
- What is the difference in population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million between China and India?
- 211.86 million, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and India?
- 66 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2025.
- How do China and India rank globally for population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million?
- China ranks 1st and India ranks 2nd of 121 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN), published as Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Population in urban agglomerations of more than one million is the country's population living in metropolitan areas that in 2018 had a population of more than one million people.