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Dubai — UN urban centre population

Modelled live estimate · UN 2025–2026 annual growth
5,283,789
Recorded base: 5,283,789 · 2025 annual estimate

Dubai has a recorded base population of 5,283,789 for the UN urban centre definition (2025 annual estimate). UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; the moving counter uses UN 2025–2026 annual growth, not new population observations.

At a glance

Population definitionUN urban centre
Recorded population5,283,789
Country share45.89% of 11,513,149 (World Bank 2025)
World share0.064% of 8,215,424,893 (World Bank 2025)
Country database rank#1 of 4 UN urban centre records
World database rank#62 of 5,233 UN urban centre records

Separate UN urban-centre definition

Dubai UN urban centre: 5,283,789 people (2025), equal to the displayed UN urban centre figure of 5,283,789. Separate GeoNames settlement record: 3,790,000; the UN value is larger (different boundaries; GeoNames population date unavailable). UN WUP 2025 Degree of Urbanisation; not a municipal/province boundary. Association: name/country/coordinates matched; boundary relationship unverified. No containment claim is made.

Administrative units of Dubai

7 administrative records listed; completeness not established. 7 of 7 population values available; population values and dates not independently verified.

Available-value subtotal: 362,485; not a reconciled total. Shares use the displayed UN urban centre denominator 5,283,789; mixed/unknown dates are not comparable. An em dash means missing, not zero.

UnitPopulationShareMembership
Dubai Investments Park160,0003.03%Not independently verified
Dubai Marina120,0002.27%Not independently verified
Al Wasl22,1530.42%Not independently verified
Umm Suqaym16,4590.31%Not independently verified
Al Safa15,6720.30%Not independently verified
Knowledge Village15,0000.28%Not independently verified
Downtown Dubai13,2010.25%Not independently verified

Comparable database records

Same definition label: UN urban centre. Dates/boundaries may still differ; this is not a harmonised international city ranking. Ratios use 5,283,789 as denominator.

PlacePopulationvs Dubai
Xi’an5,231,053−1.0%
Mashhad5,398,248+2.2%
Yaoundé5,106,087−3.4%
Toronto5,494,431+4.0%
Kochi5,077,670−3.9%

About these numbers

Source: UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025. Reference: 2025 annual estimate. Live method: exponential projection from modelling anchor 2025-01-01 using UN 2025–2026 annual growth (+1.38% per year). This anchor is a modelling convention, not an observed population date. Tiles, ranks and comparisons use the recorded base figure 5,283,789, not the ticking estimate. Country/world denominators are World Bank values and can differ in date and method from local/UN values. Ranks cover only records with the same definition label in this database, not all cities in the world.

Harmonised UN urban-centre ranking · Embed

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This page is a structured reference entry. Its sources, geographic definition and reference dates determine what the figures mean; it is not independent reporting about the causes of change. Read the accompanying explanation before comparing different places or vintages.

Urban and administrative population explained →

Interpretation reviewed 12 October 2026. Underlying reference years are stated on the page; this is not a fresh census or dataset refresh.