NUTS 3 areas of Belgium by population

Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. Brussel-Hoofdstad had the highest population of 44 areas in 2018, at 1.21 million. Arr. Bastogne had the lowest, at 48,828. The median was 178,531 and the figure for Belgium was 11.4 million. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Lowest48,828Arr. Bastogne
Median178,53144 areas
Belgium11,398,589History

All areas, 2018

CSVChart (SVG)

Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. B…Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. Brussel-Hoofdstad: 1,205,492 persons1,205,492Arr. AntwerpenArr. Antwerpen: 1,047,030 persons1,047,030Arr. Halle-VilvoordeArr. Halle-Vilvoorde: 632,717 persons632,717Arr. LiègeArr. Liège: 626,222 persons626,222Arr. GentArr. Gent: 557,050 persons557,050Arr. LeuvenArr. Leuven: 505,829 persons505,829Arr. TurnhoutArr. Turnhout: 459,392 persons459,392Arr. HasseltArr. Hasselt: 417,361 persons417,361Arr. NivellesArr. Nivelles: 401,508 persons401,508Arr. CharleroiArr. Charleroi: 396,981 persons396,981Arr. MechelenArr. Mechelen: 343,101 persons343,101Arr. NamurArr. Namur: 316,606 persons316,606Arr. KortrijkArr. Kortrijk: 289,349 persons289,349Arr. AalstArr. Aalst: 289,279 persons289,279Arr. BruggeArr. Brugge: 282,020 persons282,020Arr. MonsArr. Mons: 258,817 persons258,817Arr. MaaseikArr. Maaseik: 251,684 persons251,684Arr. Sint-NiklaasArr. Sint-Niklaas: 250,825 persons250,825Arr. Tournai-MouscronArr. Tournai-Mouscron: 223,981 persons223,981Arr. Verviers - communes francoph…Arr. Verviers - communes francophones: 210,486 persons210,486Arr. TongerenArr. Tongeren: 203,694 persons203,694Arr. DendermondeArr. Dendermonde: 200,423 persons200,423Arr. OostendeArr. Oostende: 156,638 persons156,638Arr. RoeselareArr. Roeselare: 151,962 persons151,962Arr. La LouvièreArr. La Louvière: 141,252 persons141,252Arr. AthArr. Ath: 127,534 persons127,534Arr. OudenaardeArr. Oudenaarde: 123,923 persons123,923Arr. HuyArr. Huy: 113,165 persons113,165Arr. DinantArr. Dinant: 111,566 persons111,566Arr. IeperArr. Ieper: 106,511 persons106,511Arr. SoigniesArr. Soignies: 103,488 persons103,488Arr. TieltArr. Tielt: 92,738 persons92,738Arr. ThuinArr. Thuin: 91,703 persons91,703Arr. EekloArr. Eeklo: 84,732 persons84,732Arr. WaremmeArr. Waremme: 80,969 persons80,969Bezirk Verviers - Deutschsprachig…Bezirk Verviers - Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft: 77,529 persons77,529Arr. PhilippevilleArr. Philippeville: 66,986 persons66,986Arr. NeufchâteauArr. Neufchâteau: 63,105 persons63,105Arr. ArlonArr. Arlon: 62,520 persons62,520Arr. VeurneArr. Veurne: 61,587 persons61,587Arr. Marche-en-FamenneArr. Marche-en-Famenne: 56,870 persons56,870Arr. VirtonArr. Virton: 53,687 persons53,687Arr. DiksmuideArr. Diksmuide: 51,449 persons51,449Arr. BastogneArr. Bastogne: 48,828 persons48,828
persons. Source: Eurostat. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankAreas2018
persons
Change on 2017
1Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. Brussel-Hoofdstad1,205,492+0.5%
2Arr. Antwerpen1,047,030+0.5%
3Arr. Halle-Vilvoorde632,717+0.8%
4Arr. Liège626,222+0.2%
5Arr. Gent557,050+0.4%
6Arr. Leuven505,829+0.6%
7Arr. Turnhout459,392+0.7%
8Arr. Hasselt417,361+0.4%
9Arr. Nivelles401,508+0.4%
10Arr. Charleroi396,981+0.1%
11Arr. Mechelen343,101+0.7%
12Arr. Namur316,606+0.4%
13Arr. Kortrijk289,349+0.4%
14Arr. Aalst289,279+0.8%
15Arr. Brugge282,020+0.2%
16Arr. Mons258,8170%
17Arr. Maaseik251,684+0.2%
18Arr. Sint-Niklaas250,825+0.6%
19Arr. Tournai-Mouscron223,981+0.2%
20Arr. Verviers - communes francophones210,486+0.1%
21Arr. Tongeren203,694+0.5%
22Arr. Dendermonde200,423+0.3%
23Arr. Oostende156,638+0.4%
24Arr. Roeselare151,962+0.7%
25Arr. La Louvière141,252-0.1%
26Arr. Ath127,534+0.2%
27Arr. Oudenaarde123,923+0.4%
28Arr. Huy113,165+0.2%
29Arr. Dinant111,5660%
30Arr. Ieper106,511-0%
31Arr. Soignies103,488+0.5%
32Arr. Tielt92,738+0.2%
33Arr. Thuin91,703+0.2%
34Arr. Eeklo84,732+0.5%
35Arr. Waremme80,969+0.8%
36Bezirk Verviers - Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft77,529+0.3%
37Arr. Philippeville66,986-0.6%
38Arr. Neufchâteau63,105-0.1%
39Arr. Arlon62,520+0.3%
40Arr. Veurne61,587+0.5%
41Arr. Marche-en-Famenne56,870+0.1%
42Arr. Virton53,687+0.2%
43Arr. Diksmuide51,449+0.3%
44Arr. Bastogne48,828+0.2%

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 1.21 million in 2018, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which area has the lowest population?

Arr. Bastogne, with 48,828 in 2018.

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