As defined by the German Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development, a Großstadt (large city) is a city with more than 100,000 inhabitants.[1] As of today, 80 cities in Germany fulfill this criterion and are listed here. This list refers only to the population of individual municipalities within their defined limits, which does not include other municipalities or suburban areas within urban agglomerations or metropolitan areas.
The following table lists the 80 cities in Germany with a population of at least 100,000 each on 31 December 2021, as estimated by the Federal Statistical Office of Germany.[2] A city is displayed in bold if it is a state or federal capital, and in italics if it is the most populous city in the state. The table below contains the following information:
Schwerin is the only state capital not listed.
2021 rank |
City | State | 2021 estimate |
2015 estimate |
Growth | Rank change |
2021 land area |
2021 population density |
Location |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Berlin | Berlin | 3,677,472 | 3,520,031 | +4.47% | 0 | 891.3 km2 344.1 sq mi |
4,126/km2 10,690/sq mi |
52°31′N 13°23′E / 52.517°N 13.383°E |
2 | Hamburg | Hamburg | 1,906,411 | 1,787,408 | +6.66% | 0 | 755.2 km2 291.6 sq mi |
2,524/km2 6,540/sq mi |
53°33′N 10°0′E / 53.550°N 10.000°E |
3 | Munich (München) | Bavaria | 1,487,708 | 1,450,381 | +2.57% | 0 | 310.7 km2 120.0 sq mi |
4,788/km2 12,400/sq mi |
48°8′N 11°34′E / 48.133°N 11.567°E |
4 | Cologne (Köln) | North Rhine-Westphalia | 1,073,096 | 1,060,582 | +1.18% | 0 | 405.15 km2 156.43 sq mi |
2,648/km2 6,860/sq mi |
50°56′N 6°57′E / 50.933°N 6.950°E |
5 | Frankfurt am Main | Hesse | 759,224 | 732,688 | +3.62% | 0 | 248.31 km2 95.87 sq mi |
3,057/km2 7,920/sq mi |
50°7′N 8°41′E / 50.117°N 8.683°E |
6 | Stuttgart | Baden-Württemberg | 626,275 | 623,738 | +0.41% | 0 | 207.33 km2 80.05 sq mi |
3,020/km2 7,800/sq mi |
48°47′N 9°11′E / 48.783°N 9.183°E |
7 | Düsseldorf | North Rhine-Westphalia | 619,477 | 612,178 | +1.19% | 0 | 217.41 km2 83.94 sq mi |
2,849/km2 7,380/sq mi |
51°14′N 6°47′E / 51.233°N 6.783°E |
8 | Leipzig | Saxony | 601,866 | 560,472 | +7.39% | 2 | 297.4 km2 114.8 sq mi |
2,024/km2 5,240/sq mi |
51°20′N 12°23′E / 51.333°N 12.383°E |
9 | Dortmund | North Rhine-Westphalia | 586,852 | 586,181 | +0.11% | 1 | 280.71 km2 108.38 sq mi |
2,091/km2 5,420/sq mi |
51°31′N 7°28′E / 51.517°N 7.467°E |
10 | Essen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 579,432 | 582,624 | −0.55% | 1 | 210.34 km2 81.21 sq mi |
2,755/km2 7,140/sq mi |
51°27′N 7°1′E / 51.450°N 7.017°E |
11 | Bremen | Bremen | 563,290 | 557,464 | +1.05% | 0 | 326.7 km2 126.1 sq mi |
1,724/km2 4,470/sq mi |
53°5′N 8°48′E / 53.083°N 8.800°E |
12 | Dresden | Saxony | 555,351 | 543,825 | +2.12% | 0 | 328.8 km2 127.0 sq mi |
1,689/km2 4,370/sq mi |
51°2′N 13°44′E / 51.033°N 13.733°E |
13 | Hanover (Hannover) | Lower Saxony | 535,932 | 532,163 | +0.71% | 0 | 204.0 km2 78.8 sq mi |
2,627/km2 6,800/sq mi |
52°22′N 9°43′E / 52.367°N 9.717°E |
14 | Nuremberg (Nürnberg) | Bavaria | 510,632 | 509,975 | +0.13% | 0 | 186.5 km2 72.0 sq mi |
2,739/km2 7,090/sq mi |
49°27′N 11°5′E / 49.450°N 11.083°E |
15 | Duisburg | North Rhine-Westphalia | 495,152 | 491,231 | +0.80% | 0 | 232.8 km2 89.9 sq mi |
2,127/km2 5,510/sq mi |
51°26′N 6°46′E / 51.433°N 6.767°E |
16 | Bochum | North Rhine-Westphalia | 363,441 | 364,742 | −0.36% | 0 | 145.4 km2 56.1 sq mi |
2,500/km2 6,500/sq mi |
51°29′N 7°13′E / 51.483°N 7.217°E |
17 | Wuppertal | North Rhine-Westphalia | 354,572 | 350,046 | +1.29% | 0 | 168.4 km2 65.0 sq mi |
2,105/km2 5,450/sq mi |
51°16′N 7°11′E / 51.267°N 7.183°E |
18 | Bielefeld | North Rhine-Westphalia | 334,002 | 333,090 | +0.27% | 0 | 257.8 km2 99.5 sq mi |
1,296/km2 3,360/sq mi |
52°1′N 8°32′E / 52.017°N 8.533°E |
19 | Bonn | North Rhine-Westphalia | 331,885 | 318,809 | +4.10% | 0 | 141.1 km2 54.5 sq mi |
2,353/km2 6,090/sq mi |
50°44′N 7°6′E / 50.733°N 7.100°E |
20 | Münster | North Rhine-Westphalia | 317,713 | 310,039 | +2.48% | 0 | 302.9 km2 117.0 sq mi |
1,049/km2 2,720/sq mi |
51°58′N 7°38′E / 51.967°N 7.633°E |
21 | Mannheim | Baden-Württemberg | 311,831 | 305,780 | +1.98% | 1 | 145.0 km2 56.0 sq mi |
2,151/km2 5,570/sq mi |
49°29′N 8°28′E / 49.483°N 8.467°E |
22 | Karlsruhe | Baden-Württemberg | 306,502 | 307,755 | −0.41% | 1 | 173.5 km2 67.0 sq mi |
1,767/km2 4,580/sq mi |
49°0′N 8°24′E / 49.000°N 8.400°E |
23 | Augsburg | Bavaria | 296,478 | 286,374 | +3.53% | 0 | 146.8 km2 56.7 sq mi |
2,019/km2 5,230/sq mi |
48°22′N 10°54′E / 48.367°N 10.900°E |
24 | Wiesbaden | Hesse | 278,950 | 276,218 | +0.99% | 0 | 203.9 km2 78.7 sq mi |
1,368/km2 3,540/sq mi |
50°5′N 8°14′E / 50.083°N 8.233°E |
25 | Mönchengladbach | North Rhine-Westphalia | 261,001 | 259,996 | +0.39% | 1 | 170.4 km2 65.8 sq mi |
1,531/km2 3,970/sq mi |
51°12′N 6°26′E / 51.200°N 6.433°E |
26 | Gelsenkirchen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 260,126 | 260,368 | −0.09% | 1 | 104.8 km2 40.5 sq mi |
2,481/km2 6,430/sq mi |
51°31′N 7°6′E / 51.517°N 7.100°E |
27 | Aachen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 249,070 | 245,885 | +1.30% | 3 | 160.85 km2 62.10 sq mi |
1,548/km2 4,010/sq mi |
50°47′N 6°5′E / 50.783°N 6.083°E |
28 | Braunschweig | Lower Saxony | 248,823 | 251,364 | −1.01% | 1 | 192.1 km2 74.2 sq mi |
1,295/km2 3,350/sq mi |
52°16′N 10°31′E / 52.267°N 10.517°E |
29 | Kiel | Schleswig-Holstein | 246,243 | 246,306 | −0.03% | 0 | 118.6 km2 45.8 sq mi |
2,076/km2 5,380/sq mi |
54°20′N 10°8′E / 54.333°N 10.133°E |
30 | Chemnitz | Saxony | 243,105 | 248,645 | −2.23% | 2 | 220.85 km2 85.27 sq mi |
1,101/km2 2,850/sq mi |
50°50′N 12°55′E / 50.833°N 12.917°E |
31 | Halle (Saale) | Saxony-Anhalt | 238,061 | 236,991 | +0.45% | 0 | 135.0 km2 52.1 sq mi |
1,763/km2 4,570/sq mi |
51°29′N 11°58′E / 51.483°N 11.967°E |
32 | Magdeburg | Saxony-Anhalt | 236,188 | 235,723 | +0.20% | 0 | 201.0 km2 77.6 sq mi |
1,175/km2 3,040/sq mi |
52°8′N 11°37′E / 52.133°N 11.617°E |
33 | Freiburg im Breisgau | Baden-Württemberg | 231,848 | 226,393 | +2.41% | 0 | 153.1 km2 59.1 sq mi |
1,514/km2 3,920/sq mi |
47°59′N 7°51′E / 47.983°N 7.850°E |
34 | Krefeld | North Rhine-Westphalia | 227,050 | 225,144 | +0.85% | 0 | 137.7 km2 53.2 sq mi |
1,649/km2 4,270/sq mi |
51°20′N 6°34′E / 51.333°N 6.567°E |
35 | Mainz | Rhineland-Palatinate | 217,556 | 209,779 | +3.71% | 3 | 97.7 km2 37.7 sq mi |
2,226/km2 5,770/sq mi |
50°0′N 8°16′E / 50.000°N 8.267°E |
36 | Lübeck | Schleswig-Holstein | 216,277 | 216,253 | +0.01% | 1 | 214.1 km2 82.7 sq mi |
1,010/km2 2,600/sq mi |
53°52′N 10°41′E / 53.867°N 10.683°E |
37 | Erfurt | Thuringia | 213,227 | 210,118 | +1.48% | 0 | 269.2 km2 103.9 sq mi |
792/km2 2,050/sq mi |
50°59′N 11°2′E / 50.983°N 11.033°E |
38 | Oberhausen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 208,752 | 210,934 | −1.03% | 2 | 77.0 km2 29.7 sq mi |
2,710/km2 7,000/sq mi |
51°28′N 6°51′E / 51.467°N 6.850°E |
39 | Rostock | Mecklenburg-Vorpommern | 208,400 | 206,011 | +1.16% | 0 | 181.4 km2 70.0 sq mi |
1,149/km2 2,980/sq mi |
54°5′N 12°8′E / 54.083°N 12.133°E |
40 | Kassel | Hesse | 200,406 | 197,984 | +1.22% | 0 | 107.0 km2 41.3 sq mi |
1,873/km2 4,850/sq mi |
51°19′N 9°30′E / 51.317°N 9.500°E |
41 | Hagen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 188,713 | 189,044 | −0.18% | 0 | 160.4 km2 61.9 sq mi |
1,177/km2 3,050/sq mi |
51°22′N 7°29′E / 51.367°N 7.483°E |
42 | Potsdam | Brandenburg | 183,154 | 167,745 | +9.19% | 3 | 187.3 km2 72.3 sq mi |
978/km2 2,530/sq mi |
52°24′N 13°4′E / 52.400°N 13.067°E |
43 | Saarbrücken | Saarland | 179,634 | 178,151 | +0.83% | 0 | 167.1 km2 64.5 sq mi |
1,075/km2 2,780/sq mi |
49°14′N 7°0′E / 49.233°N 7.000°E |
44 | Hamm | North Rhine-Westphalia | 179,238 | 179,397 | −0.09% | 2 | 226.3 km2 87.4 sq mi |
792/km2 2,050/sq mi |
51°41′N 7°49′E / 51.683°N 7.817°E |
45 | Ludwigshafen am Rhein | Rhineland-Palatinate | 172,145 | 164,718 | +4.51% | 1 | 77.7 km2 30.0 sq mi |
2,216/km2 5,740/sq mi |
49°29′N 8°26′E / 49.483°N 8.433°E |
46 | Mülheim an der Ruhr | North Rhine-Westphalia | 170,739 | 169,278 | +0.86% | 2 | 91.3 km2 35.3 sq mi |
1,871/km2 4,850/sq mi |
51°26′N 6°53′E / 51.433°N 6.883°E |
47 | Oldenburg | Lower Saxony | 170,389 | 163,830 | +4.00% | 0 | 103.0 km2 39.8 sq mi |
1,655/km2 4,290/sq mi |
53°8′N 8°13′E / 53.133°N 8.217°E |
48 | Osnabrück | Lower Saxony | 165,034 | 162,403 | +1.62% | 1 | 119.8 km2 46.3 sq mi |
1,378/km2 3,570/sq mi |
52°17′N 8°3′E / 52.283°N 8.050°E |
49 | Leverkusen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 163,851 | 163,487 | +0.22% | 1 | 78.9 km2 30.5 sq mi |
2,078/km2 5,380/sq mi |
51°2′N 6°59′E / 51.033°N 6.983°E |
50 | Darmstadt | Hesse | 159,631 | 155,353 | +2.75% | 4 | 122.2 km2 47.2 sq mi |
1,306/km2 3,380/sq mi |
49°52′N 8°39′E / 49.867°N 8.650°E |
51 | Heidelberg | Baden-Württemberg | 159,245 | 156,267 | +1.91% | 0 | 108.8 km2 42.0 sq mi |
1,463/km2 3,790/sq mi |
49°25′N 8°43′E / 49.417°N 8.717°E |
52 | Solingen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 158,957 | 158,726 | +0.15% | 2 | 89.5 km2 34.6 sq mi |
1,777/km2 4,600/sq mi |
51°10′N 7°5′E / 51.167°N 7.083°E |
53 | Herne | North Rhine-Westphalia | 156,621 | 155,851 | +0.49% | 1 | 51.4 km2 19.8 sq mi |
3,047/km2 7,890/sq mi |
51°33′N 7°13′E / 51.550°N 7.217°E |
54 | Regensburg | Bavaria | 153,542 | 145,465 | +5.55% | 2 | 80.8 km2 31.2 sq mi |
1,901/km2 4,920/sq mi |
49°1′N 12°5′E / 49.017°N 12.083°E |
55 | Neuss | North Rhine-Westphalia | 152,731 | 155,414 | −1.73% | 2 | 99.5 km2 38.4 sq mi |
1,535/km2 3,980/sq mi |
51°12′N 6°42′E / 51.200°N 6.700°E |
56 | Paderborn | North Rhine-Westphalia | 152,531 | 148,126 | +2.97% | 1 | 179.4 km2 69.3 sq mi |
850/km2 2,200/sq mi |
51°43′N 8°46′E / 51.717°N 8.767°E |
57 | Ingolstadt | Bavaria | 138,016 | 132,438 | +4.21% | 0 | 133.4 km2 51.5 sq mi |
1,035/km2 2,680/sq mi |
48°46′N 11°26′E / 48.767°N 11.433°E |
58 | Offenbach am Main | Hesse | 131,295 | 123,734 | +6.11% | 3 | 44.9 km2 17.3 sq mi |
2,924/km2 7,570/sq mi |
50°6′N 8°48′E / 50.100°N 8.800°E |
59 | Fürth | Bavaria | 129,122 | 124,171 | +3.99% | 0 | 63.4 km2 24.5 sq mi |
2,038/km2 5,280/sq mi |
49°28′N 11°0′E / 49.467°N 11.000°E |
60 | Ulm | Baden-Württemberg | 126,949 | 122,636 | +3.52% | 2 | 118.7 km2 45.8 sq mi |
1,070/km2 2,800/sq mi |
48°24′N 9°59′E / 48.400°N 9.983°E |
61 | Würzburg | Bavaria | 126,933 | 124,873 | +1.65% | 3 | 87.6 km2 33.8 sq mi |
1,449/km2 3,750/sq mi |
49°47′N 9°56′E / 49.783°N 9.933°E |
62 | Heilbronn | Baden-Württemberg | 125,613 | 122,567 | +2.49% | 1 | 99.9 km2 38.6 sq mi |
1,258/km2 3,260/sq mi |
49°9′N 9°13′E / 49.150°N 9.217°E |
63 | Pforzheim | Baden-Württemberg | 125,529 | 122,247 | +2.68% | 1 | 98.0 km2 37.8 sq mi |
1,281/km2 3,320/sq mi |
48°54′N 8°43′E / 48.900°N 8.717°E |
64 | Wolfsburg | Lower Saxony | 123,949 | 124,045 | −0.08% | 4 | 204.0 km2 78.8 sq mi |
608/km2 1,570/sq mi |
52°25′23″N 10°47′14″E / 52.42306°N 10.78722°E |
65 | Bottrop | North Rhine-Westphalia | 117,311 | 117,143 | +0.14% | 1 | 100.7 km2 38.9 sq mi |
1,165/km2 3,020/sq mi |
51°31′29″N 6°55′22″E / 51.52472°N 6.92278°E |
66 | Göttingen | Lower Saxony | 116,557 | 118,914 | −1.98% | 1 | 116.9 km2 45.1 sq mi |
997/km2 2,580/sq mi |
51°32′N 9°56′E / 51.533°N 9.933°E |
67 | Reutlingen | Baden-Württemberg | 116,456 | 114,310 | +1.88% | 2 | 87.1 km2 33.6 sq mi |
1,338/km2 3,470/sq mi |
48°29′N 9°13′E / 48.483°N 9.217°E |
68 | Koblenz | Rhineland-Palatinate | 113,638 | 112,586 | +0.93% | 3 | 105.0 km2 40.5 sq mi |
1,082/km2 2,800/sq mi |
50°21′35″N 7°35′52″E / 50.35972°N 7.59778°E |
69 | Erlangen | Bavaria | 113,292 | 108,336 | +4.57% | 6 | 77.0 km2 29.7 sq mi |
1,472/km2 3,810/sq mi |
49°35′N 11°1′E / 49.583°N 11.017°E |
70 | Bremerhaven | Bremen | 113,173 | 114,025 | −0.75% | 0 | 93.8 km2 36.2 sq mi |
1,206/km2 3,120/sq mi |
53°33′N 8°35′E / 53.550°N 8.583°E |
71 | Remscheid | North Rhine-Westphalia | 111,770 | 109,499 | +2.07% | 3 | 74.6 km2 28.8 sq mi |
1,498/km2 3,880/sq mi |
51°11′N 7°12′E / 51.183°N 7.200°E |
72 | Bergisch Gladbach | North Rhine-Westphalia | 111,645 | 111,366 | +0.25% | 0 | 83.1 km2 32.1 sq mi |
1,343/km2 3,480/sq mi |
51°0′N 7°7′E / 51.000°N 7.117°E |
73 | Recklinghausen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 110,714 | 114,330 | −3.16% | 5 | 66.4 km2 25.6 sq mi |
1,667/km2 4,320/sq mi |
51°35′6″N 7°9′43″E / 51.58500°N 7.16194°E |
74 | Trier | Rhineland-Palatinate | 110,570 | 114,914 | −3.78% | 7 | 117.1 km2 45.2 sq mi |
945/km2 2,450/sq mi |
49°45′N 6°38′E / 49.750°N 6.633°E |
75 | Jena | Thuringia | 110,502 | 109,527 | +0.89% | 2 | 114.8 km2 44.3 sq mi |
963/km2 2,490/sq mi |
50°55′38″N 11°35′10″E / 50.92722°N 11.58611°E |
76 | Moers | North Rhine-Westphalia | 103,725 | 104,529 | −0.77% | 0 | 67.7 km2 26.1 sq mi |
1,533/km2 3,970/sq mi |
51°27′33″N 6°37′11″E / 51.45917°N 6.61972°E |
77 | Salzgitter | Lower Saxony | 103,694 | 101,079 | +2.59% | 2 | 223.9 km2 86.4 sq mi |
463/km2 1,200/sq mi |
52°9′N 10°20′E / 52.150°N 10.333°E |
78 | Siegen | North Rhine-Westphalia | 101,516 | 102,355 | −0.82% | 1 | 114.7 km2 44.3 sq mi |
885/km2 2,290/sq mi |
50°53′N 8°1′E / 50.883°N 8.017°E |
79 | Gütersloh | North Rhine-Westphalia | 101,158 | 97,586 | +3.66% | 3 | 112.0 km2 43.2 sq mi |
896/km2 2,320/sq mi |
51°54′N 8°23′E / 51.900°N 8.383°E |
80 | Hildesheim | Lower Saxony | 100,319 | 101,667 | −1.33% | 2 | 92.2 km2 35.6 sq mi |
1,088/km2 2,820/sq mi |
52°9′N 9°57′E / 52.150°N 9.950°E |