Scattered across different parts of a large country. Million-plus cities are the center of attraction for millions of tourists from all over the world, migrants, students and workers. Population statistics are compiled from the annual census of the population by the bodies of RosStat. It should be noted that only citizens who permanently reside in the territory of a particular city are indicated in the population. The following are the most populated cities in Russia.

1. Moscow

Moscow is the largest city in Russia both in terms of population and area. A population of 12,330,126 inhabits both sides of the city's waterway, the Moscow River. The capital of the state - Moscow - is the most multinational city in Russia: migrants, students, workers and tourists come here from all over the country.

Ten facts about Moscow:

• a major international center of economy and trade;
• a major industrial hub of the country;
• one of the best and largest educational centers for Russian and foreign students;
• a large number of research institutes are located in Moscow;
• more than 50 directions in religion;
• a major cultural and historical center of the European part of Russia;
• the country's largest transport interchange: 3 river ports (in Soviet times Moscow was called the "port of 5 seas"), 9 railway stations, 5 airports with directions to all corners of the planet;
• Moscow is “kilometer zero”, all roads lead here;
• tourist center of the country;
• the capital is one of the "five" cities in the world in terms of the number of dollar billionaires living in it.

Petrograd, aka Leningrad or Peter in short, is located along the sovereign course of the Neva River and its coastal granite. Many poems have been composed about the beautiful city located between Ladoga and the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland, which is near the Baltic Sea. This big city is shrouded in secrets and legends. Walking along its streets, you walk along the streets of Dostoevsky, Gogol or Tsvetaeva. Populationis 5,225,690 people with a population density of 3631 people. per square kilometer with a total city area of ​​1439 km².

Ten facts about St. Petersburg:

• northern Venice - the second name of the northern capital because of the huge number of large and small rivers, tributaries and canals and the similarity with the Venetian streets;
• Petersburg is listed in the Red Book according to the total length of tram lines in the city - it is 600 kilometers;
• the deepest subway in the world, the depth of some stations reaches 80 meters;
• "White Nights" is one of the main attractions that attract tourists to the cultural capital;
• in St. Petersburg there is the highest cathedral in Russia - the Peter and Paul Cathedral, the height of the spire of which is 122.5 meters;
• The Hermitage is a world-famous museum that attracts tourists from all over the world, has a length of its corridors of 20 kilometers, and a tourist who wants to get acquainted with all the exhibits of the museum will need several years to complete this mission;
• the question that every tourist in the city asks is what is the total number of bridges in St. Petersburg? 447, this is the number in the register of the Mostotrest company, which maintains the bridges of the city;
• Peterhof is a marvel of engineering. Fountain park, which was laid out in the time of Peter the Great, but to this day none of the fountains has a pumping unit, but only a carefully thought-out pipeline;
• Peter himself "chooses" the inhabitants, and not the resident chooses him. The damp and humid climate of the city, which at times is very gray and foggy, not every person can withstand;
• The architecture of St. Petersburg is similar to the architecture of the neighboring countries of the European Union - Tallinn on the Estonian side and Helsinki on the Finnish side.

3. Novosibirsk

The city was awarded the last place in the top three most populated cities in Russia. It is the center of Siberian industry and trade, research and educational activities, cultural, business and tourism areas of the district. The Siberian capital is home to 1,584,138 people, while the area of ​​the city is only 505 km².

Novosibirsk is a city with a very developed infrastructure and economy, and it is a point of attraction for those migrating from nearby cities, regions, republics, and even neighboring states.

Five interesting facts about Novosibirsk:

• The longest metro bridge is located in the capital of the Siberian Federal District;
• the opera and ballet theater in Novosibirsk is the theatrical building, which is the first largest in Russia and the second largest in the world;
• Planirovochnaya Street is both parallel and perpendicular to itself, forming 2 intersections;
• the only museum of the Sun in Russia is located in the city;
• Novosibirsk Academgorodok is a large educational and research center in the Siberian Federal District.

4. Yekaterinburg

Yekaterinburg, formerly Sverdlovsk, ranks 4th among Russian cities with a population of over a million people (1,444,439 people with a total city area of ​​1,142 square kilometers). The Trans-Siberian Railway and six major highways pass through this huge transport and sorting center, which occupies a huge niche in Russia's logistics. Yekaterinburg is an industrial city with a developed industry in various fields, from optical and mechanical to light and food industries.

5. Nizhny Novgorod

Gorky until 1990, or "Nizhny" in the common people, a million-plus city and an auto giant in the Volga Federal District. Founded in the time of Prince Yuri Vsevolodovich, Nizhny Novgorod, spread across both sides of the Oka River, today has a population of 1,266,871 and is the fifth largest city in Russia. The area of ​​the city is only 410 km², but a large seaport, the largest automobile plant in Russia, a concern engaged in the manufacture and production of military equipment, an aircraft plant and a shipbuilding are concentrated here. In addition to the development in the industry, Nizhny Novgorod is famous for its Kremlin and extraordinary architecture. This is a wonderful city for tourism. Even the most sophisticated traveler will be delighted with the beauties of Nizhny Novgorod.

The area of ​​the city is 425 square kilometers with a population of 1,216,965 people and a population density of 2,863 people per square kilometer. The capital of Tatarstan has its own Kremlin and a rather rich architectural heritage, which encourages Russians and foreign residents to tourism. Kazan is not just a beautiful and big city, but also a center of international trade and economy, education, tourism with an interesting historical past.

The population of Chelyabinsk is 1,191,994 people per 530 square kilometers, which is 2,379 people per square kilometer in terms of density. The "Severe City", as it is jokingly called, has a lot of funny stories and facts: a meteorological hyperionic brick, Kaganovichgrad, a forest in the city center, the Chelyabinsk meteorite, Stalin in the Chelyabinsk prison... Interested? Then it's time to go to Chelyabinsk with a tour!

An important and rather large industrial and transport center, where the well-known oil refinery is located both in Russia and abroad. Omsk is also a significant city for tourists: the Cathedral of the Assumption for foreigners is on the list of "the main attractions in the world", and the Vatican has included the Okunevskoe Sanctuary among the holy places of world significance. The population of the administrative center-capital of the Omsk region is 1,178,079, while the area of ​​Omsk is only 572.9,572 km².

The millionaire city, formerly called Kuibyshev, is known for its historically important places that have become attractions: the Iversky Convent, the Lutheran Church, the Catholic Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Cathedral Square - now Kuibyshev Square - the first in size in Europe and the fifth in the world. Every year, hundreds of thousands of people from the country come here for the Grushinsky festival of bard songs. The population of 1170910 people lives in the city, the area of ​​which is 382 sq. km.

10. Rostov-on-Don

Rostov, popularly called "Rostov-Papa" is a city of federal significance for the south of Russia. It's big, beautiful, noisy. The phrase often cuts the ear: “Rostov-dad, Odessa-mother” - this is a historical expression - both cities were criminal capitals competing with each other. With a rather small city area of ​​348 square kilometers, the population of Rostov is 1,119,875 people. and ranks 10th in the ranking of the largest cities in Russia in terms of population.

Most of the Russian population is concentrated in cities. In total, there are more than 1,100 thousand of them with official status. But only 160 of them have a population of more than 100,000 people. And a tenth of them - 15 pieces - are millionaires, that is, they are home to more than one, but less than two million people. The two capitals - Moscow and St. Petersburg - are multi-million cities, that is, they are home to more than two million people. But not only these, but also other largest cities in Russia deserve a special story.

Moscow

Moscow is the capital of Russia, today and in some other periods of the country's history. It is the largest settlement in the world and one of the largest in the world. Now about 12 million people live in it, and the total agglomeration, taking into account the suburbs, is even more - 15 million people. The total area is about 250 square kilometers. This means that the population density is 4823 people per square kilometer. It is difficult to say when this city was founded, but the first mention of it dates back to the beginning of the 12th century.

Moscow is a multinational city. Only about 90% of its population, according to official figures, are Russians. About 1.5% are Ukrainians, the same number are Tatars, slightly less than Armenians. Half a percent - Belarusians, Azerbaijanis, Georgians. Dozens more nationalities have smaller diasporas. And although representatives of various nationalities do not always get along peacefully, Moscow has become a real home for millions of people.

St. Petersburg is often called the second capital of Russia, the northern or cultural capital, and so on. He also has many beautiful epithet names - northern Palmyra, northern Venice. And although the population of this city is significantly inferior to Moscow (5 million against 12), as well as age (3 centuries against 9), in terms of glory and significance for the country, St. Petersburg is in no way inferior to it. It is also inferior in terms of area, population density and many other parameters. But on the other hand, St. Petersburg is one of the "longest cities" - it "hugs" the Gulf of Finland.

It should be noted that St. Petersburg is unique in many respects. Of all the non-capital cities, it has the second largest population. During the years that this city was the capital of the empire, it became the most important for world culture. The Hermitage, the Russian Museum, St. Isaac's Cathedral, Peterhof, the Kunstkamera are only a small part of its attractions.

The list of the largest settlements in the country continues with Novosibirsk, the administrative center of the Siberian Federal District, the most populated city in the northern part of the country. It is also a business, commercial, industrial, cultural and scientific center not only in Siberia, but throughout Russia.

Novosibirsk is a millionaire, but much fewer people live in it than in the previous two cities - “only” a little more than one and a half million. At the same time, it should be taken into account that Novosibirsk was founded relatively recently - in 1893. This city is distinguished from others by a rather harsh climate with sharp transitions. In winter, temperatures can reach 50 degrees, while in summer, sometimes the bars rise to 35 degrees. The total temperature difference throughout the year can reach a record 88 degrees.

Yekaterinburg is considered not only one of the largest cities in the country, but also one of the most comfortable and comfortable for life. It is the center of the Ural Federal District and is often called the capital of the Urals.

Ekaterinburg can be attributed to the ancient cities of the country. After all, it was founded in 1723 and received a name in honor of Empress Catherine the First. In Soviet times, it was renamed Sverdlovsk, but in 1991 it returned its name.

This is the case when Veliky Novgorod, older and titled, is significantly inferior to its younger namesake - Nizhny Novgorod. Residents of Russia often call him simply Lower, for brevity and not to be confused with the Great.

The city was founded in 1221 and during this time has become the administrative center of the Nizhny Novgorod Federal District, a major economic, industrial and cultural center with a population of 1,200 thousand people.

Kazan is the sixth city in the ranking in terms of population, but in many ways it surpasses even larger settlements. Not without reason, it is called the third capital of Russia and even officially registered this brand. She also has several unofficial titles, for example, "The capital of all the Tatars of the world" or "the capital of Russian federalism."

This city with more than a thousand years of history was founded in 1005 and recently celebrated such a major anniversary. Interestingly, the decline in population, which affected almost all cities, even many millionaires, did not affect Kazan, and it continues to increase its population. The national composition is also remarkable - almost equally Russians and Tatars, approximately 48% each, as well as a few Chuvashs, Ukrainians and Maris.

Many people know this city from the song "Ah, Samara-town". But they forget that in terms of size, this "town" ranks seventh in terms of population. If we talk about the agglomeration, then it is much larger than that of many other cities, and has 2.5 million inhabitants, which is the third largest in the country, after Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Samara was founded in 1586 as a guard fortress by decree of Tsar Fedor. The location of the city turned out to be successful, and the city grew every year. In the Soviet years, it was renamed Kuibyshev, but then returned to its original name.

The internet is full of jokes about the toughest city in the country. A new round was opened by the fall of a meteorite, which occurred just in its center. But not everyone knows that this city is the most compact metropolis in the country, one of the leading metallurgical centers, a city with excellent roads. In addition, it is in the TOP-15 cities of Russia in terms of living standards, TOP-20 in terms of environmental development, TOP-5 in terms of the number of new buildings put into operation. It even ranks first in terms of housing affordability. And all this concerns the "harsh" Chelyabinsk.

It is worth noting that the city continues to develop. Until recently, it was ranked ninth in the ranking, and now it has risen to eighth with a population of 1,170 thousand people. Its national composition is quite diverse. Most - 86% are Russians, another 5% - Tatars, 3% - Bashkirs, 1.5 - Ukrainians, 0.6% - Germans, and so on.

Omsk is the ninth most populated city in the Russian Federation, but it has not always been this way. When the small fortress was founded in 1716, only a few thousand people lived in it. But now there are more than 1,166 thousand of them. But, unlike many other millionaire cities, the Omsk agglomeration is extremely small - only about 20 thousand.

Like many other cities in Russia, representatives of various nationalities live in this city. Most of all, of course, Russians - 89%, another 3.5 - Kazakhs, 2% each - Ukrainians and Tatars, 1.5% - Germans.

Rostov-on-Don, like Nizhny Novgorod, which we talked about above, has its own "namesake" - Veliky Rostov. But the Great is significantly inferior to it in size: Rostov-on-Don, albeit the last number, is included in the TOP-10 largest cities in Russia, while the Great has only about 30 thousand inhabitants, although it is several times older.

Now you know which is the largest city in Russia, where it is located and how many people live in it. But in addition to the ten listed in the country, there are five more millionaires: Ufa, Krasnoyarsk, Perm, Vladimir and Voronezh. The rest are trying very hard to enter this prestigious list, and some may soon succeed.

Russia is a country with a fairly high level of urbanization. Today in our country there are 15 million-plus cities. Which Russian cities are leading in terms of population at the moment? You will find the answer to this question in this fascinating article.

Urbanization and Russia

Is urbanization an achievement or a scourge of our modernity? It is difficult to answer this question. After all, this process is characterized by great inconsistency, provoking both positive and negative consequences.

This concept in a broad sense means the growth of the role of the city in human life. This process, bursting into our lives in the 20th century, fundamentally changed not only the reality around us, but also the person himself.

Mathematically speaking, urbanization is a measure of the proportion of the urban population of a country or region. Highly urbanized are those countries in which this figure exceeds 65%. In the Russian Federation, about 73% of the population lives in cities. You can find a list of cities in Russia by below.

It should be noted that the processes of urbanization in Russia took place (and are taking place) in two aspects:

1. The emergence of new cities that covered new spaces of the country.
2. Expansion of already existing cities and formation of large agglomerations.

History of Russian cities

In 1897, within the boundaries of modern Russia, the All-Russian counted 430 cities. Most of them were small towns, there were only seven large ones at that time. And all of them were up to the line of the Ural Mountains. But in Irkutsk - the current center of Siberia - there were hardly 50 thousand inhabitants.

A century later, the situation with cities in Russia has changed dramatically. It is quite possible that the main reason for this was the quite reasonable regional policy pursued by the Soviet authorities in the 20th century. One way or another, but by 1997 the number of cities in the country had increased to 1087, and the proportion of the urban population had grown to 73 percent. At the same time, cities increased twenty-three times! And today almost 50% of the total population of Russia lives in them.

Thus, only a hundred years have passed, and Russia has been transformed from a country of villages into a state of large cities.

Russia is a country of megacities

The largest cities of Russia in terms of population are distributed quite unevenly over its territory. Most of them are located in the most populated part of the country. Moreover, in Russia there is a steady trend towards the formation of agglomerations. It is they who form the framework grid (socio-economic and cultural) on which the entire system of settlement, as well as the country's economy, is strung.

850 cities (out of 1087) are located within European Russia and the Urals. In terms of area, this is only 25% of the territory of the state. But in the vast Siberian and Far Eastern expanses - only 250 cities. This nuance greatly complicates the process of developing the Asian part of Russia: the shortage of large metropolitan areas is felt especially acutely here. After all, there are colossal deposits of minerals. However, there is simply no one to develop them.

The Russian North also cannot boast of a dense network of large cities. This region is also characterized by focal settlement of the population. The same can be said about the south of the country, where in the mountainous and foothill regions only lonely and brave brave cities "survive".

So can Russia be called a country of big cities? Of course. Nevertheless, in this country, with its vast expanses and colossal natural resources, there is still a shortage of large cities.

The largest cities in Russia by population: TOP-5

As mentioned above, as of 2015, there are 15 million-plus cities in Russia. Such a title, as you know, is given to that settlement, the number of inhabitants of which has exceeded one million.

So, we list the largest cities in Russia by population:

1. Moscow (from 12 to 14 million inhabitants according to various sources).
2. St. Petersburg (5.13 million people).
3. Novosibirsk (1.54 million people).
4. Yekaterinburg (1.45 million people).
5. Nizhny Novgorod (1.27 million people).

If you carefully analyze the population (namely, its upper part), you will notice one interesting feature. We are talking about a fairly large gap in the number of residents between the first, second and third lines of this rating.

Thus, over twelve million people live in the capital, and about five million live in St. Petersburg. But the third largest city in Russia - Novosibirsk - is inhabited by only one and a half million inhabitants.

Moscow is the largest metropolis on the planet

The capital of the Russian Federation is one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world. It is very difficult to say how many people live in Moscow. Official sources speak of twelve million people, unofficial sources give other figures: from thirteen to fifteen million. Experts, in turn, predict that in the coming decades, the population of Moscow may even increase to twenty million people.

Moscow is included in the list of 25 so-called "global" cities (according to Foreign Policy magazine). These are the cities that make the most significant contribution to the development of world civilization.

Moscow is not only a significant industrial, political, scientific, educational and financial center of Europe, but also a tourist center. Four objects of the Russian capital are included in the UNESCO heritage list.

Finally...

In total, about 25% of the country's population lives in 15 million-plus cities in Russia. And all these cities continue to attract more and more people.

The largest cities in Russia are, of course, Moscow, St. Petersburg and Novosibirsk. All of them have significant industrial, cultural, as well as scientific and educational potential.

Almost all residents of our country know that the largest city in terms of population is Moscow, the capital of the Russian Federation, and the second largest city in terms of population is the city of St. Petersburg, the northern "capital". And what other cities are in the top 10 in terms of population in our country - Russia. Two cities are constantly fighting for third place, which periodically replace each other in this position - this is the Ural capital Yekaterinburg and the Siberian capital Novosibirsk. The population of these cities fluctuates around one and a half million people. Also in the top 10 are such cities - Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Chelyabinsk, Omsk, Samara, Rostov-on-Don, whose population is more than one million people. All these cities are classified as cities with a population of one million in the Russian Federation. Also, this category of cities, in addition to the above, includes such cities as Ufa, Krasnoyarsk, Perm, Voronezh, Volgograd. Another 21 cities in our country have a population of 500,000 to 1,000,000. Other cities in the country have a smaller population.

Moscow.


The capital of the Russian Federation with a population of 12,330,126 people. The largest city not only in Russia, but also in the world, where it takes 10th place. The city was founded in 1147. Located on the Moscow River. The largest city in Europe.

St. Petersburg.


Northern, cultural "capital" with a population of 5,225,690. The second most populated city in Russia. A hero city that was under blockade for 872 days during the Great Patriotic War. Until January 26, 1924, it was called Petrograd, until September 6, 1991, Leningrad. It was founded in 1703 by order of Peter the Great. The third city in Europe in terms of population.

Novosibirsk.


The Siberian capital with a population of 1,584,138 people. The third most populated city in Russia, the largest in Siberia. Founded in 1893, received city status in 1903. Until 1925 it was called Novo-Nikolaevsk.

Yekaterinburg.


The capital of the Urals with a population of 1,444,439 people. Founded November 7, 1723. From 1924 to 1991 it was called Sverdlovsk. During the reign of Catherine II, the Siberian Highway was laid through the city - the main road to the riches of Siberia - Yekaterinburg became a "window to Asia", like St. Petersburg - a "window to Europe".

Nizhny Novgorod.


It closes the top five Russian cities in terms of population - 1,266,871 people. The city was founded in 1221 - one of the oldest cities in our country. From 1932 to 1990 it was called Gorky.

Kazan.


Capital of the Republic of Tatarstan. Population 1,216,965 people. The city was founded in 1005. The largest tourist center.

Chelyabinsk.


Population 1,191,994. Founded in 1736. The largest industrial center of the country.

Omsk.


City of Siberia with a population of 1,178,079 people. Founded in 1716. The second city in Siberia in terms of population. It is located at the confluence of the Irtysh and Om rivers.

Samara.


Population 1,170,910. Founded in 1586. From 1935 to 1991, the name Kuibyshev began. The city has the highest railway station in Europe. Samara has the longest embankment in Russia.

Rostov-on-Don.


Population 1,119,875 people. The city was founded in 1749. The city is located on the Don River. The city is called the "gates of the Caucasus", the southern capital.