EU regions (NUTS 2) by population

Name: EU regions (NUTS 2) by population, 2021
Creator: Eurostat, European Commission
License: Eurostat reuse policy (commercial and non-commercial reuse, attribution required)

Ile-de-France had the highest population of 244 regions in 2021, at 12.32 million. Åland had the lowest, at 30,129. The median was 1.36 million and the figure for the European Union (27) was 445.89 million. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Highest12,317,279Ile-de-France

Lowest30,129Åland

Median1,364,910244 regions

European Union (27)445,891,011History

Top 40 regions, 2021

CSV Chart (SVG)

persons. Source: Eurostat. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

Rank	Regions	2021 persons	Change on 2020
1	Ile-de-France	12,317,279	+0.4%
2	Lombardia	9,981,554	-0.5%
3	Andalusia	8,484,804	+0.3%
4	Catalonia	7,749,896	+0.4%
5	Rhône-Alpes	6,745,694	+0.5%
6	Community of Madrid	6,726,640	+0.1%
7	Lazio	5,730,399	-0.4%
8	Campania	5,624,260	-1.5%
9	Düsseldorf	5,200,090	-0.1%
10	Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur	5,127,840	+0.6%
11	Valencian Community	5,067,911	+0.4%
12	Veneto	4,869,830	-0.2%
13	Sicilia	4,833,705	-0.9%
14	Oberbayern	4,719,716	+0.2%
15	Köln	4,475,530	-0.1%
16	Emilia-Romagna	4,438,937	-0.6%
17	Śląskie Series break	4,310,201	-3.7%
18	Piemonte	4,274,945	-0.8%
19	Stuttgart	4,151,094	-0.1%
20	Nord-Pas de Calais	4,072,734	+0.1%
21	Darmstadt	4,026,618	+0.2%
22	Puglia	3,933,777	-0.5%
23	Pays de la Loire	3,853,999	+0.6%
24	Attiki	3,838,210	+0.1%
25	Zuid-Holland	3,726,050	+0.5%
26	Toscana	3,692,865	0%
27	Berlin	3,664,088	-0.1%
28	Norte	3,601,434	0%
29	Arnsberg	3,571,053	-0.3%
30	Aquitaine	3,515,932	+0.9%
31	Wielkopolskie Series break	3,455,384	-0.7%
32	Bretagne	3,394,567	+0.6%
33	Małopolskie Series break	3,324,543	-1.4%
34	Warszawski stołeczny Series break	3,242,890	+5.2%
35	Nord-Est Estimated	3,163,465	-0.7%
36	Midi-Pyrénées	3,123,896	+0.8%
37	Schleswig-Holstein	2,910,875	+0.2%
38	Languedoc-Roussillon	2,898,280	+0.8%
39	Noord-Holland	2,888,486	+0.3%
40	Sud-Muntenia Estimated	2,868,994	-1.1%
41	Dolnośląskie Series break	2,833,557	-1.1%
42	Karlsruhe	2,807,601	-0.1%
43	Galicia	2,698,177	-0.2%
44	Münster	2,624,719	0%
45	Noord-Brabant	2,573,949	+0.4%
46	Centre - Val de Loire	2,573,303	-0.1%
47	Weser-Ems	2,542,666	+0.3%
48	Nord-Vest Estimated	2,537,017	-0.4%
49	Brandenburg	2,531,071	+0.4%
50	Eastern and Midland	2,499,231	+1.3%
51	Stockholm	2,391,990	+0.6%
52	Castile and León	2,385,223	-0.6%
53	Łódzkie Series break	2,380,949	-2.5%
54	Sud-Est Estimated	2,351,636	-1.1%
55	Bucureşti-Ilfov Estimated	2,327,057	+0.2%
56	Lorraine	2,325,020	-0.1%
57	Centru Estimated	2,302,833	-0.5%
58	Pomorskie Series break	2,295,666	-0.9%
59	Freiburg	2,276,924	+0.2%
60	Mazowiecki regionalny Series break	2,239,471	-3.4%
61	Basque Country	2,212,628	0%
62	Sachsen-Anhalt	2,180,684	-0.6%
63	Canary Islands	2,178,924	+0.1%
64	Hannover	2,147,704	-0%
65	Thüringen	2,120,237	-0.6%
66	Gelderland	2,096,603	+0.5%
67	Grande Lisboa	2,071,857	-0.5%
68	Västsverige	2,071,191	+0.6%
69	Rheinhessen-Pfalz	2,063,123	0%
70	Detmold	2,054,178	-0.1%
71	Castilla-La Mancha	2,052,505	+0.2%
72	Yugozapaden	2,024,977	-0.5%
73	Vidurio ir vakarų Lietuvos regionas	1,999,964	-0.3%
74	Lubelskie Series break	1,981,180	-5.1%
75	Podkarpackie Series break	1,979,297	-5%
76	Kujawsko-pomorskie Series break	1,969,116	-4%
77	Picardie	1,922,558	-0.3%
78	Wien	1,920,949	+0.5%
79	Alsace	1,919,745	+0.2%
80	Schwaben	1,905,841	+0.3%
81	Latvija	1,893,223	-0.8%
82	Sud-Vest Oltenia Estimated	1,892,078	-1%
83	Prov. Antwerpen	1,879,318	+0.3%
84	Tübingen	1,867,424	+0.2%
85	Calabria	1,860,601	-1.8%
86	Hovedstaden	1,855,084	+0.5%
87	Haute-Normandie	1,854,852	0%
88	Hamburg	1,852,478	+0.3%
89	Poitou-Charentes	1,826,243	+0.3%
90	Západné Slovensko	1,819,399	-0.2%
91	Kentriki Makedonia	1,811,239	-1%
92	Mittelfranken	1,775,704	0%
93	Vest Estimated	1,758,582	-0.7%
94	Östra Mellansverige	1,737,737	+0.6%
95	Lüneburg	1,722,474	+0.4%
96	Helsinki-Uusimaa	1,702,678	+0.8%
97	Niederösterreich	1,690,879	+0.4%
98	Budapest	1,690,503	-1.6%
99	Jihovýchod Series break	1,685,220	-1%
100	Southern	1,676,038	+0.9%
101	Centro (PT)	1,662,137	+0.2%
102	Východné Slovensko	1,629,120	+0.1%
103	Bourgogne	1,620,593	-0.1%
104	Mecklenburg-Vorpommern	1,610,774	+0.2%
105	Zachodniopomorskie Series break	1,610,051	-3.7%
106	Braunschweig	1,590,577	-0.3%
107	Sardegna	1,590,044	-1.3%
108	Dresden	1,589,888	-0.4%
109	Sydsverige	1,548,392	+0.7%
110	Prov. Oost-Vlaanderen	1,533,876	+0.5%
111	Liguria	1,518,495	-0.4%
112	Region of Murcia	1,518,279	+0.6%
113	Koblenz	1,500,830	+0.2%
114	Marche	1,498,236	-1%
115	Severovýchod Series break	1,496,140	-1.4%
116	Oberösterreich	1,495,608	+0.4%
117	Basse-Normandie	1,473,114	+0.1%
118	Észak-Alföld	1,423,489	-0.5%
119	Chemnitz	1,413,730	-0.9%
120	Länsi-Suomi	1,378,851	0%
121	Střední Čechy Series break	1,372,588	-0.9%
122	Auvergne	1,368,667	-0%
123	Utrecht	1,361,153	+0.5%
124	Prov. Hainaut	1,349,861	-0%
125	Stredné Slovensko	1,334,238	-0.2%
126	Midtjylland	1,332,048	+0.4%
127	Aragon	1,331,938	+0.1%
128	Eesti	1,330,068	+0.1%
129	Warmińsko-mazurskie Series break	1,322,861	-5.4%
130	Unterfranken	1,317,507	-0%
131	Champagne-Ardenne	1,316,522	-0.2%
132	Yuzhen tsentralen	1,313,914	-0.2%
133	Jadranska Hrvatska	1,304,875	-1%
134	Pest	1,300,389	+1%
135	Abruzzo	1,281,012	-1%
136	Pohjois- ja Itä-Suomi	1,274,651	-0.3%
137	Praha Series break	1,259,413	-4.9%
138	Steiermark	1,247,077	+0.1%
139	Niederbayern	1,247,063	+0.2%
140	Région de Bruxelles-Capitale/ Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest	1,226,329	+0.2%
141	Syddanmark	1,223,634	0%
142	Kassel	1,217,796	-0.1%
143	Dél-Alföld	1,214,723	-0.7%
144	Jihozápad Series break	1,212,780	-1.7%
145	Prov. West-Vlaanderen	1,205,101	+0.2%
146	Friuli-Venezia Giulia	1,201,510	-0.4%
147	Střední Morava Series break	1,198,649	-1.3%
148	Moravskoslezsko Series break	1,183,440	-1.4%
149	Balearic Islands	1,183,415	+0.6%
150	Franche-Comté	1,179,601	+0.1%
151	Overijssel	1,166,533	+0.4%
152	Prov. Vlaams-Brabant	1,163,186	+0.6%
153	Świętokrzyskie Series break	1,154,493	-5.3%
154	Etelä-Suomi	1,147,484	-0.1%
155	Limburg (NL)	1,115,872	-0.1%
156	Prov. Liège	1,113,324	-0.1%
157	Oberpfalz	1,112,267	0%
158	Észak-Magyarország	1,111,193	-0.5%
159	Vzhodna Slovenija	1,105,046	+0.5%
160	Podlaskie Series break	1,097,521	-4.5%
161	Severozápad Series break	1,086,606	-2.6%
162	Oberfranken	1,062,085	-0.3%
163	Közép-Dunántúl	1,061,979	-0.1%
164	Extremadura	1,061,636	-0.3%
165	Leipzig	1,053,323	+0.4%
166	Gießen	1,048,740	0%
167	Panonska Hrvatska	1,030,173	-1.6%
168	Asturias	1,012,117	-0.6%
169	Zahodna Slovenija	1,003,931	+0.8%
170	Saarland	983,991	-0.3%
171	Nyugat-Dunántúl	979,459	+0.2%
172	Lubuskie Series break	965,875	-3.5%
173	Yugoiztochen	959,331	-0.4%
174	Kýpros	914,476	+1.3%
175	Opolskie Series break	910,302	-3.4%
176	Northern and Western	891,624	+0.9%
177	Prov. Limburg (BE)	883,228	+0.3%
178	Småland med öarna	873,407	+0.4%
179	La Réunion	871,157	+0.9%
180	Dél-Dunántúl	869,726	-0.4%
181	Umbria	865,452	-0.5%
182	Norra Mellansverige	858,063	0%
183	Sjælland	838,840	+0.2%
184	Severoiztochen	832,326	-0.4%
185	Oeste e Vale do Tejo	814,789	+1.1%
186	Península de Setúbal	812,838	+1.3%
187	Sostinės regionas	810,797	+0.8%
188	Sjeverna Hrvatska	789,083	-0.8%
189	Grad Zagreb	768,895	-0.7%
190	Tirol	760,105	+0.3%
191	Limousin	727,177	-0%
192	Severen tsentralen	705,241	-1.2%
193	Severozapaden	696,328	-1.2%
194	Thessalia	693,660	-0.9%
195	Bremen	680,130	-0.2%
196	Bratislavský kraj	677,024	+1.1%
197	Navarre	662,032	+0.3%
198	Dytiki Elláda	652,707	-0.6%
199	Friesland (NL)	651,435	+0.2%
200	Luxembourg	634,730	+1.4%
201	Kriti	625,872	-0.2%
202	Nordjylland	590,439	+0.1%
203	Groningen	586,937	+0.2%
204	Cantabria	584,708	+0.3%
205	Anatoliki Makedonia, Thraki	564,671	-1.1%
206	Kärnten	562,089	+0.1%
207	Salzburg	560,710	+0.4%
208	Basilicata	545,130	-1.5%
209	Peloponnisos	544,183	-1%
210	Provincia Autonoma di Trento	542,166	-0.6%
211	Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano/Bozen	534,912	+0.4%
212	Trier	534,438	+0.2%
213	Övre Norrland	522,806	+0.2%
214	Malta	516,125	+0.2%
215	Sterea Elláda	513,341	-1.3%
216	Prov. Namur	500,489	+0.2%
217	Drenthe	494,771	+0.2%
218	Alentejo	471,834	-0.1%
219	Algarve	469,892	+0.9%
220	Flevoland	428,226	+1.2%
221	Guadeloupe	415,792	+0.1%
222	Prov. Brabant wallon	408,325	+0.4%
223	Vorarlberg	399,237	+0.5%
224	Zeeland	385,400	+0.5%
225	Mellersta Norrland	375,709	-0.1%
226	Martinique	360,749	-0.1%
227	Corse	347,597	+1.1%
228	Notio Aigaio	329,474	-0.5%
229	Ipeiros	320,680	-0.9%
230	La Rioja	319,444	+0.2%
231	Burgenland	296,010	+0.5%
232	Molise	294,294	-2.1%
233	Prov. Luxembourg (BE)	291,730	+0.7%
234	Mayotte	289,039	+3.3%
235	Guyane	286,618	+0.5%
236	Dytiki Makedonia	257,875	-1.2%
237	Região Autónoma da Madeira	251,900	+0.5%
238	Região Autónoma dos Açores	237,616	+0.2%
239	Ionia Nisia	205,928	-0.4%
240	Voreio Aigaio	197,504	-1.7%
241	Valle d’Aosta/Vallée d’Aoste	124,089	-0.8%
242	Melilla	86,450	-0.1%
243	Ceuta	84,071	-0.5%
244	Åland	30,129	+0.8%

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 regions 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 region has the highest population?

Ile-de-France, with 12.32 million in 2021, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which region has the lowest population?

Åland, with 30,129 in 2021.

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.