The largest settlements of the Russian Federation are traditionally chosen according to two criteria: occupied territory and population. The area is determined by the general plan of the city. Population - by the All-Russian population census, or Rosstat data taking into account the birth rate and mortality, if they are relevant.
The largest cities in Russia by population
The largest cities in Russia with a population of more than 1 million people are 15. By this indicator, Russia ranks third in the world. And their number continues to grow. More recently, Krasnoyarsk and Voronezh entered this category. We present to you the first ten of the most densely populated Russian megacities.
10. Rostov-on-Don
Population: 1,125 thousand
Rostov-on-Don has become a millionaire city relatively recently - only thirty years ago. It is the only one among the ten largest cities in Russia that does not have its own subway. Its construction in 2018 will only be discussed. While the Rostov administration is busy preparing for the upcoming World Cup.
9. Samara
Population: 1,170 thousand people.
On the penultimate place in the list of the largest cities of Russia by population is the administrative center of the Volga region - Samara. However, since 1985, the population preferred to leave Samara rather, until by 2005 the situation had improved. And now the city has even a slight migration increase.
8. Omsk
Population: 1,178 thousand people
The situation with migration in Omsk is not brilliant - many educated Omsk residents prefer to move to Moscow, St. Petersburg and neighboring Novosibirsk and Tyumen. Nevertheless, since 2010, the population in the city has been growing steadily, mainly due to the redistribution of the population in the region.
7. Chelyabinsk
Population: 1,199 thousand
Unfortunately, Chelyabinsk is experiencing problems with landscaping: residents complain about the abundance of dirt, giant puddles in spring and summer, when due to idle storm sewers entire microdistricts turn into a likeness of Venice. It is not surprising that about 70% of Chelyabinsk residents think about changing their place of residence.
6. Kazan
Population: 1 232 thousand people.
The capital of the Republic of Tatarstan rightfully bears the title of one of the most comfortable cities in Russia. This is probably one of the reasons why the city is experiencing a steady population growth since the mid-90s. And since 2009, Kazan has become a plus not only due to migration, but also in terms of natural growth.
5. Nizhny Novgorod
Population: 1 262 thousand people.
The ancient and very beautiful city is going through hard times in terms of the number of residents. The peak was in 1991, when its population exceeded 1,445 thousand people, and since then it has only been falling. A slight increase was observed only in 2012 - 2015, when the population increased by about 10 thousand people.
4. Yekaterinburg
Population: 1 456 thousand people.
"The capital of the Urals" became a millionaire city exactly 50 years ago, in 1967. Since then, having experienced a population decline in the “hungry 90s,” the population of the city has been growing slowly but steadily. It rises, as in all major cities of Russia, mainly due to migrants. But not those that you thought about - the replenishment of the population mainly (more than 50%) comes from the Sverdlovsk region.
3. Novosibirsk
Population: 1,602 thousand people.
The third place in the list of the largest cities in Russia is occupied by the center of the Novosibirsk region. In addition to the status of "millionaire", the city also boasts entry into the top 50 cities in the world with the longest traffic jams. True, Novosibirsk is unlikely to be happy with such a record.
However, unlike traffic jams, things are more or less successful with the demographic situation in the city. A number of regional and state programs are being implemented in Novosibirsk aimed at increasing the birth rate and reducing mortality. For example, at the birth of a third or subsequent child, the family is awarded a regional certificate of 100 thousand rubles.
According to the city authorities, if the current dynamics of population growth continues, then by 2025 the number of residents of the Novosibirsk region will increase to 2.9 million people.
2. St. Petersburg
Population: 5,282 thousand people.
The cultural capital of Russia, where polite intellectuals bow to each other, raising berets, and such animals as the “bun” and “curb” still live, demonstrates a steady increase in both the area and the population.
True, this was not always the case; since the end of the USSR, the population preferred to leave St. Petersburg. And only in 2012, positive dynamics began to be observed. In the same year, a five millionth resident was born in the city (the second time in its history).
1. Moscow
Population: 12 381 thousand people.
It is unlikely that the answer to the question: “What is the largest city in Russia?” was a surprise for someone. Moscow is the largest city in Europe in terms of population, but is not among the top ten giant cities in the world.
More than 12 million people live here, and if you add to this the population of the near Moscow region, who regularly visits Moscow to work and shop, the figure is more than impressive - 16 million. Due to the current economic situation in the country, the population is modern Babylon, and the territories adjacent to it will only increase. According to experts, by 2030 this number can reach 13.6 million people.
Muscovites are traditionally not happy with the "come in large numbers", and the "come in large numbers" shrug: "I want to live, and I even want to live well."
The largest cities of Russia by area
It would seem that the list of the largest cities in Russia by area should coincide with the list of the most populated cities, but this is not so. In addition to the simple population, the area of the city is influenced by many factors - from the historical method of incrementing territories to the number of industrial enterprises in the city. Therefore, some positions in the ranking are able to surprise the reader.
10. Samara
Area: 541.4 km²
Opens the top 10 largest cities in Russia Samara. It stretched along the western bank of the Volga for more than 50 km with a width of 20 km.
9. Omsk
Area: 566.9 km²
The population of Omsk exceeded a million people back in 1979, the territory of the city is large and, according to Soviet tradition, the city had to acquire a metro. However, the nineties struck, and construction has since been going unsteadily, and in general, in any way. Not even enough money for conservation.
8. Voronezh
Area: 596.51 km²
Voronezh has become a millionaire city recently - in 2013. Some areas in it are almost exclusively a private sector - houses, from comfortable cottages to village cottages, garages, vegetable gardens.
7. Kazan
Area: 614.16 km²
Thanks to the historically established radial-ring building, Kazan is a fairly compact city with a convenient layout. Despite its size, the capital of Tatarstan is the only millionaire in Russia that completely recycles its waste and who managed to maintain a more or less favorable environmental situation.
6. Orsk
Area: 621 km²
The only regional city that is not an administrative center and a millionaire, Orsk seems to fall into this rating by mistake. Its population is only 230 thousand people, which occupy an area of 621 km2, with a very low density (only 370 people per km2). The reason for such a vast territory with a small number of inhabitants is the large number of industrial enterprises in the city.
5. Ufa
Area: 707.93 km²
Ufa residents live spaciously - each has 698 m2 of the total territory of the city. At the same time, Ufa has the lowest street network density among Russian megacities, which often manifests itself in huge multi-kilometer traffic jams.
4. Perm
Area: 799.68 km²
Perm became a millionaire in 1979, then in the nineties, due to the general decline in the number of people, it lost this status for more than 20 years. Only in 2012 it was possible to return it. Permians live freely (population density is not too high, 1310 people per km2) and green - the total area of green spaces is more than a third of the citywide.
3. Volgograd
Area: 859.4 km²
Although Volgograd has become a millionaire city relatively recently - in 1991, however, by the size of the territory, it has long been among the first three. The reason is the historically developed uneven urban development, where apartment buildings, village houses with plots and empty steppe spaces alternate with each other.
2. St. Petersburg
Area: 1,439 km²
In contrast to the compact radial beam "old" Moscow, St. Petersburg freely spread out at the mouth of the Neva. The city is over 90 km long. One of the features of the city is the abundance of water spaces, occupying 7% of the entire territory.
1. Moscow
Area: 2,561.5 km²
And the unconditional first place among the largest cities of Russia is given to Moscow. Its area is 1.5 times the area of the second place in the rating, St. Petersburg. True, until 2012, the territory of Moscow was not so impressive - only 1,100 km2. So it has grown significantly due to the annexation of the southwestern territories, the total area of which reaches 1480 km2.