NUTS 3 areas of Belgium by population

Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. Brussel-Hoofdstad had the highest population of 44 areas in 2017, at 1.2 million. Arr. Bastogne had the lowest, at 48,745. The median was 177,877 and the figure for Belgium was 11.35 million. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Lowest48,745Arr. Bastogne
Median177,87744 areas
Belgium11,351,727History

All areas, 2017

CSVChart (SVG)

Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. B…Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. Brussel-Hoofdstad: 1,199,095 persons1,199,095Arr. AntwerpenArr. Antwerpen: 1,041,811 persons1,041,811Arr. Halle-VilvoordeArr. Halle-Vilvoorde: 628,001 persons628,001Arr. LiègeArr. Liège: 625,131 persons625,131Arr. GentArr. Gent: 554,633 persons554,633Arr. LeuvenArr. Leuven: 502,643 persons502,643Arr. TurnhoutArr. Turnhout: 456,381 persons456,381Arr. HasseltArr. Hasselt: 415,812 persons415,812Arr. NivellesArr. Nivelles: 399,735 persons399,735Arr. CharleroiArr. Charleroi: 396,695 persons396,695Arr. MechelenArr. Mechelen: 340,671 persons340,671Arr. NamurArr. Namur: 315,190 persons315,190Arr. KortrijkArr. Kortrijk: 288,248 persons288,248Arr. AalstArr. Aalst: 287,018 persons287,018Arr. BruggeArr. Brugge: 281,564 persons281,564Arr. MonsArr. Mons: 258,721 persons258,721Arr. MaaseikArr. Maaseik: 251,130 persons251,130Arr. Sint-NiklaasArr. Sint-Niklaas: 249,337 persons249,337Arr. Tournai-MouscronArr. Tournai-Mouscron: 223,431 persons223,431Arr. Verviers - communes francoph…Arr. Verviers - communes francophones: 210,298 persons210,298Arr. TongerenArr. Tongeren: 202,722 persons202,722Arr. DendermondeArr. Dendermonde: 199,772 persons199,772Arr. OostendeArr. Oostende: 155,982 persons155,982Arr. RoeselareArr. Roeselare: 150,936 persons150,936Arr. La LouvièreArr. La Louvière: 141,354 persons141,354Arr. AthArr. Ath: 127,318 persons127,318Arr. OudenaardeArr. Oudenaarde: 123,415 persons123,415Arr. HuyArr. Huy: 112,976 persons112,976Arr. DinantArr. Dinant: 111,521 persons111,521Arr. IeperArr. Ieper: 106,556 persons106,556Arr. SoigniesArr. Soignies: 102,974 persons102,974Arr. TieltArr. Tielt: 92,546 persons92,546Arr. ThuinArr. Thuin: 91,560 persons91,560Arr. EekloArr. Eeklo: 84,308 persons84,308Arr. WaremmeArr. Waremme: 80,330 persons80,330Bezirk Verviers - Deutschsprachig…Bezirk Verviers - Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft: 77,304 persons77,304Arr. PhilippevilleArr. Philippeville: 67,416 persons67,416Arr. NeufchâteauArr. Neufchâteau: 63,162 persons63,162Arr. ArlonArr. Arlon: 62,318 persons62,318Arr. VeurneArr. Veurne: 61,282 persons61,282Arr. Marche-en-FamenneArr. Marche-en-Famenne: 56,836 persons56,836Arr. VirtonArr. Virton: 53,556 persons53,556Arr. DiksmuideArr. Diksmuide: 51,293 persons51,293Arr. BastogneArr. Bastogne: 48,745 persons48,745
persons. Source: Eurostat. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankAreas2017
persons
Change on 2016
1Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. Brussel-Hoofdstad1,199,095-0.2%
2Arr. Antwerpen1,041,811+0.6%
3Arr. Halle-Vilvoorde628,001+0.8%
4Arr. Liège625,131+0.2%
5Arr. Gent554,633+0.7%
6Arr. Leuven502,643+0.7%
7Arr. Turnhout456,381+0.3%
8Arr. Hasselt415,812+0.3%
9Arr. Nivelles399,735+0.5%
10Arr. Charleroi396,695-0.2%
11Arr. Mechelen340,671+0.9%
12Arr. Namur315,190+0.6%
13Arr. Kortrijk288,248+0.4%
14Arr. Aalst287,018+0.6%
15Arr. Brugge281,564+0.3%
16Arr. Mons258,721+0.2%
17Arr. Maaseik251,130+0.2%
18Arr. Sint-Niklaas249,337+0.9%
19Arr. Tournai-Mouscron223,431-0%
20Arr. Verviers - communes francophones210,298+0.1%
21Arr. Tongeren202,722+0.3%
22Arr. Dendermonde199,772+0.5%
23Arr. Oostende155,982+0.5%
24Arr. Roeselare150,936+0.6%
25Arr. La Louvière141,354+0.1%
26Arr. Ath127,318+0.2%
27Arr. Oudenaarde123,415+0.2%
28Arr. Huy112,976+0.3%
29Arr. Dinant111,521+0.4%
30Arr. Ieper106,556-0%
31Arr. Soignies102,974+0.6%
32Arr. Tielt92,546+0.2%
33Arr. Thuin91,560+0.4%
34Arr. Eeklo84,308+0.5%
35Arr. Waremme80,330+1%
36Bezirk Verviers - Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft77,304-0%
37Arr. Philippeville67,416-0.3%
38Arr. Neufchâteau63,162+0.5%
39Arr. Arlon62,318+1.9%
40Arr. Veurne61,282-0.2%
41Arr. Marche-en-Famenne56,836-0.5%
42Arr. Virton53,556-0.1%
43Arr. Diksmuide51,293+0.4%
44Arr. Bastogne48,745+0.5%

Other periods

About this ranking

Resident population. Spain and the EU: 1 January, with Spanish figures from the official municipal register (Padrón). United States: Census Bureau population estimates for 1 July. Other countries and the World: World Bank mid-year estimates, which count all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.

For Denmark, Statistics Denmark counts the registered resident population on 1 January. Greenland and the Faroe Islands are excluded. The annual series selects the first-quarter reference date from FOLK1A. The World Bank series exists for every country, so use it (through compare) to rank countries on one basis.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the areas are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Population on 1 January by NUTS 3 region (demo_r_pjanaggr3). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/demo_r_pjanaggr3/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

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Questions

Which area has the highest population?

Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. Brussel-Hoofdstad, with 1.2 million in 2017, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which area has the lowest population?

Arr. Bastogne, with 48,745 in 2017.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Population on 1 January by NUTS 3 region (demo_r_pjanaggr3). Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Population: other rankings

NUTS 3 areas of Belgium: more rankings