5 EU metropolitans host 35.7M people in 2023

ISTANBUL (AA) - The EU’s top five metropolitan regions hosted a total of 35.7 million people in 2023, according to data from Eurostat released on Monday.

The regional statistical bureau said that the region with the largest number of people is Paris, France, with a population of 12.4 million.

After Paris, Spain’s capital Madrid ranked second with 6.9 million people, followed by Barcelona with 5.8 million inhabitants.

In Germany, the capital Berlin and the Ruhr region hosted 5.5 million and 5.1 million residents, respectively, completing the top five EU regions with the most people.

“The most significant population growth was observed in Madrid (+322 000), Barcelona (+282 000), and Berlin (+222 000),” said the report.

As for population decline, the Italian capital Rome saw a noticeable decrease of 129,000 compared to 2018, whereas the population of Milan remained stable at a 6,000 decrease.