List of United States cities by population density


The following is a list of incorporated places in the United States with a population density of over 10,000 people per square mile. As defined by the United States Census Bureau, an incorporated place is defined as a place that has a self-governing local government and as such has been "incorporated" by the state it is in. Each state has different laws defining how a place can be incorporated and so an "incorporated place" as recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau can designate a variety of places, such as a city, town, village, borough, and township.
The other type of place defined by the U.S. Census Bureau for statistical purposes are census-designated places. Census-designated places are distinct from incorporated places because they do not have a local government and thus depend on higher government bodies, such as a county, for governance. Census-designated places are defined as being in an unincorporated area. Census-designated places that have a population density of over 10,000 people per square mile are listed in a separate table below. The five boroughs of New York City, and the census-designated places of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands that have densities over 10,000, are also listed in separate tables below.

Incorporated places with a density of over 10,000 people per square mile

The following data about the most densely populated incorporated places in the United States is from the U.S. Census Bureau and is from the 2010 U.S. Census, except for the tables on Puerto Rico, which show data from the 2000 US Census. The following ranking is made up of incorporated places of any population, but also of interest may be lists compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau of all places with at least 50,000 population, arranged alphabetically by state, and ranked by total population; the population density for each place is also given in the lists.
The population density is calculated by dividing the population by the land area so that it represents the number of people living in one square mile of land area. The population densities listed in the table below do not work out to be exactly the result of dividing the listed population by the listed land area because the land areas have been rounded off to two decimal places, but the population densities were calculated before rounding the land area figures. The land area figures are calculated using the U.S. Census Bureau's TIGER system. The U.S. Census Bureau has released the exact land area figures for all places in the U.S. in square meters and square miles; the exact land areas are the figures used for calculating the population densities seen in the table below.
The list below only includes incorporated places of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Unincorporated census-designated places, places in Puerto Rico, and the five boroughs of New York City are all listed in separate tables below. Washington, D.C. misses the 10,000 mark as the city has a population density of 9,800 people per square mile as of the 2010 U.S. Census.
Those cities that are not a part of a larger city's metropolitan area are in bold.
RankIncorporated placeMetropolitan areaStatePopulation
Land area
Land area
Population
density
Population
density
1GuttenbergNew York CityNew Jersey0.1960.50822,015.7
2Union CityNew York CityNew Jersey3.3220,045.6
3West New YorkNew York CityNew Jersey2.6119,059.0
4HobokenNew York CityNew Jersey3.3215,083.6
5KaserNew York CityNew York0.44010,729.1
6New York CityNew York CityNew York783.7310,431.1
7Cliffside ParkNew York CityNew Jersey2.499,489.3
8East NewarkNew York CityNew Jersey0.2599,289.6
9MaywoodLos AngelesCalifornia3.068,963.8
10PassaicNew York CityNew Jersey8.058,663.2
11Great Neck PlazaNew York CityNew York0.8038,353.5
12North Bay VillageMiamiFlorida0.8558,350.3
13CudahyLos AngelesCalifornia2.908,206.4
14Sunny Isles BeachMiamiFlorida2.627,963.6
15Huntington ParkLos AngelesCalifornia7.857,405.3
16SomervilleBostonMassachusetts10.657,116.5
17West HollywoodLos AngelesCalifornia4.877,064.6
18IrvingtonNew York CityNew Jersey7.677,034.1
19Poplar HillsLouisvilleKentucky0.0526,988.4
20PatersonNew York CityNew Jersey21.866,267
21San FranciscoSan FranciscoCalifornia120.936,658.9
22SweetwaterMiamiFlorida2.126,356.1
23Bell GardensLos AngelesCalifornia6.456,523.7
24MillbournePhiladelphiaPennsylvania0.1816,392.7
25East OrangeNew York CityNew Jersey10.186,314.2
26CambridgeBostonMassachusetts16.656,314.7
27Central FallsProvidenceRhode Island3.345,799.3
28Jersey CityNew York CityNew Jersey38.646,212.2
29ChelseaBostonMassachusetts5.676,184.7
30LawndaleLos AngelesCalifornia5.136,183.7
31WeehawkenNew York CityNew Jersey2.206,132.7
32South Floral ParkNew York CityNew York0.2596,092.7
33Mount VernonNew York CityNew York11.296,055.5
34FairviewNew York CityNew Jersey2.206,020.9
35Long BeachNew York CityNew York5.546,003.5
36Hawaiian GardensLos AngelesCalifornia2.495,944.0
37Stone ParkChicagoIllinois0.8555,998.6
38HempsteadNew York CityNew York9.535,933.6
39OrangeNew York CityNew Jersey5.725,742.3
40BellLos AngelesCalifornia6.425,708.1
41CiceroChicagoIllinois15.155,650.7
42LynwoodLos AngelesCalifornia12.565,560.3
43Bay Harbor IslandsMiamiFlorida0.9585,872.9
44Palisades ParkNew York CityNew Jersey3.135,447.9
45Fort LeeNew York CityNew Jersey6.555,411.7
46GarfieldNew York CityNew Jersey5.525,399.3
47HawthorneLos AngelesCalifornia15.705,359.0
48BerwynChicagoIllinois10.085,361.4
49Daly CitySan FranciscoCalifornia19.585,292.1
50Elmwood ParkChicagoIllinois4.955,135.6
51BostonBostonMassachusetts125.435,143.4
52ConshohockenPhiladelphiaPennsylvania1.555,072.7
53South GateLos AngelesCalifornia19.095,048.9
54ManorhavenNew York CityNew York1.225,042.3
55Mount RainierWashington, D.C.Maryland1.685,047.8
56Hermosa BeachLos AngelesCalifornia3.705,012.8
57WoodlynnePhiladelphiaNew Jersey0.5705,226.4
58Island ParkNew York CityNew York0.9584,937.9
59New SquareNew York CityNew York0.9324,959.3
60Pennsbury VillagePittsburghPennsylvania0.1554,749.1
61DarbyPhiladelphiaPennsylvania2.125,032.0
62DormontPittsburghPennsylvania1.924,855.0
63East LansdownePhiladelphiaPennsylvania0.5444,754.6
64Santa AnaLos AngelesCalifornia70.294,808.2
65BellflowerLos AngelesCalifornia15.724,794.1
66InglewoodLos AngelesCalifornia23.674,632.9
67EdgewaterNew York CityNew Jersey2.434,728.9
68BelleroseNew York CityNew York0.2594,529.0
69El MonteLos AngelesCalifornia24.734,688.4
70Spring ValleyNew York CityNew York5.444,681.8
71Prospect ParkNew York CityNew Jersey1.244,648.5
72StantonLos AngelesCalifornia8.084,628.6
73Kiryas JoelNew York CityNew York2.854,611.5
74Mobile CityDallasTexas0.0523,783.8
75ChicagoChicagoIllinois588.264,582.3
76Asbury ParkNew York CityNew Jersey3.704,571.1
77Port ChesterNew York CityNew York6.114,559.1
78HarrisonNew York CityNew Jersey3.164,564.9
79La PuenteLos AngelesCalifornia9.044,542.8
80San PabloSan FranciscoCalifornia6.684,521.7
81Mount OliverPittsburghPennsylvania0.8814,508.3
82ParamountLos AngelesCalifornia12.254,511.3
83Floral ParkNew York CityNew York3.554,499.9
84WallingtonNew York CityNew Jersey2.594,472.2
85ShrewsburyNew York CityNew Jersey0.2334,710.4
86East Palo AltoSan FranciscoCalifornia6.604,467.6
87Williston ParkNew York CityNew York1.634,450.0
88Miami BeachMiamiFlorida18.214,829.5
89NewarkNew York CityNew Jersey61.644,437.7
90KenmoreBuffaloNew York3.734,404.2
91Baldwin ParkLos AngelesCalifornia17.254,396.5
92New Hyde ParkNew York CityNew York2.184,377.2
93AlhambraLos AngelesCalifornia19.744,347.7
94EverettBostonMassachusetts8.754,345.0
95PhiladelphiaPhiladelphiaPennsylvania349.884,337.3
96North BergenNew York CityNew Jersey13.474,313.4
97Oak ParkChicagoIllinois12.174,314.8
98TrentonNew York CityNew Jersey19.844,304.7
99MiamiMiamiFlorida92.384,323.8
100MaldenBostonMassachusetts13.134,290.5
101Johnson CityPortlandOregon0.164,079.8
102BayonneNew York CityNew Jersey14.584,241.1
103Valley StreamNew York CityNew York8.914,210.2
104HamtramckDetroitMichigan5.464,204.3
105ParksidePhiladelphiaPennsylvania0.5444,168.1
106Clifton HeightsPhiladelphiaPennsylvania1.614,221.6
107Roselle ParkNew York CityNew Jersey3.164,203.1
108YonkersNew York CityNew York46.834,187.5
109BogotaNew York CityNew Jersey1.974,190.7
110BerkeleySan FranciscoCalifornia27.124,151.6
111BellevilleNew York CityNew Jersey8.654,153.3
112NorwalkLos AngelesCalifornia25.074,120.2
113LodiNew York CityNew Jersey5.854,095.2
114Victory GardensNew York CityNew Jersey0.3883,979.4
115LomitaLos AngelesCalifornia4.924,073.6
116New BrunswickNew York CityNew Jersey14.9954,075.8
117HialeahMiamiFlorida49.834,508.6
118RosemeadLos AngelesCalifornia13.344,011.3
119Upper DarbyPhiladelphiaPennsylvania20.384,014.1
120AlbanySan FranciscoCalifornia4.643,998.9
121HackensackNew York CityNew Jersey10.673,999.4
122LawrenceBostonMassachusetts18.033,996.5
123MineolaNew York CityNew York4.823,992.6
124West ChesterPhiladelphiaPennsylvania4.663,959.9
125LakewoodClevelandOhio14.373,940.7
126TuckahoeNew York CityNew York1.583,931.3
127East RockawayNew York CityNew York2.643,942.0
128Santa MonicaLos AngelesCalifornia21.393,930.4
129ElizabethNew York CityNew Jersey31.913,916.5
130ArtesiaLos AngelesCalifornia4.203,903.9
131CollingdalePhiladelphiaPennsylvania2.333,769.2
132Harwood HeightsChicagoIllinois2.123,906.7
133Redondo BeachLos AngelesCalifornia16.273,889.4

Census-designated places

The following is a list of unincorporated census-designated places with population densities of over 10,000 people per square mile as of the 2010 U.S. Census. The rank column indicates the rank the place would have if it was included in the above table of incorporated places.
RankCensus-designated placeMetropolitan areaStatePopulation
Land area
Population density
1Friendship VillageWashington, D.C.Maryland
11Bellerose TerraceNew York CityNew York
12Walnut ParkLos AngelesCalifornia
15LennoxLos AngelesCalifornia
20Langley ParkWashington, D.C.Maryland
24East ComptonLos AngelesCalifornia
29WestmontLos AngelesCalifornia
31Florence-GrahamLos AngelesCalifornia
32East Los AngelesLos AngelesCalifornia
41Loch LomondMiamiFlorida
44Ewa GentryHonoluluHawaii
50Ramblewood EastMiamiFlorida
56RollingwoodSan FranciscoCalifornia
60South San Jose HillsLos AngelesCalifornia
63Franklin ParkMiamiFlorida
66FontainebleauMiamiFlorida
68North Fair OaksSan FranciscoCalifornia
74West Puente ValleyLos AngelesCalifornia
75WaipahuHonoluluHawaii
78Seven CornersWashington, D.C.Virginia
84Isla VistaSanta Barbara CountyCalifornia
92Alum RockSan FranciscoCalifornia
97Ocean GroveNew York CityNew Jersey
99CherrylandSan FranciscoCalifornia
103CitrusLos AngelesCalifornia
106BurbankSan FranciscoCalifornia
118AshlandSan FranciscoCalifornia
120Bailey's CrossroadsWashington, D.C.Virginia
124Kendall WestMiamiFlorida
137ValindaLos AngelesCalifornia
140HuntingtonWashington, D.C.Virginia
145Village ParkHonoluluHawaii
146Arcadia UniversityPhiladelphiaPennsylvania
150Ewa BeachHonoluluHawaii
152South WhittierLos AngelesCalifornia
157Franklin SquareNew York CityNew York
162VincentLos AngelesCalifornia

New York City boroughs

The following lists the population densities of the five boroughs of New York City as of the 2010 U.S. Census. The rank column indicates the rank they would have if included in the above table of incorporated places. Staten Island has a population density below 10,000 but it is included for comparative purposes.
RankBoroughMetropolitan areaStatePopulation
Land area
Population density
1ManhattanNew York CityNew York
5BrooklynNew York CityNew York
6The BronxNew York CityNew York
16QueensNew York CityNew York
Staten IslandNew York CityNew York

Puerto Rico

The following lists the census-designated places in Puerto Rico that have a population density of over 10,000 people per square mile as of the 2000 U.S. Census. The census-designated places in Puerto Rico include zonas urbanas and comunidades. The municipality, or municipio, the place is located in is also included in the table below. The municipalities are what is thought of as "incorporated places" in Puerto Rico because there are no subordinate governments within them, only eight electoral districts which hold no administrative functions. No municipalities have a density over 10,000 as of the 2000 U.S. Census; the San Juan Municipio is the densest at 9,084.4 people per square mile. The Jayuya municipality is not part of any metropolitan area as it is only part of the Jayuya micropolitan area. The rank column indicates the rank the place would have if included in the above table of incorporated places.
RankCensus-designated placeMetropolitan areaMunicipalityPopulation
Land area
Population density
43San IsidroSan JuanCanóvanas
52LevittownSan JuanToa Baja
53SuárezSan JuanLoíza
64ViequesSan JuanLoíza
69CampanillaSan JuanToa Baja
105El OjoPonceSanta Isabel
110AguadaAguadillaAguada
115San JuanSan JuanSan Juan
126Peña PobreSan JuanNaguabo
127JayuyaJayuya
136ComeríoSan JuanComerío

Northern Mariana Islands

In the Northern Mariana Islands, there is one place that has more than 10,000 people per square mile: China Town, Northern Mariana Islands. The other non-Puerto Rico U.S. territories do not have any places with more than 10,000 people per square mile. China Town, Northern Mariana Islands is a Census-Designated Place; it is also a village within the larger municipality of Saipan. China Town would rank 105th if it were in the first table above.
RankCensus-designated placeMetropolitan areaMunicipalityPopulation
Land area
Population density
105China Town, MP-Saipan?

List of incorporated cities in the United States with over 75,000 residents

Below is a list of the most densely populated cities in the United States which have a population density over 10,000 people per square mile and have a total population of over 75,000 according to the 2010 Census. This list relates to the first list, but excludes cities under 75,000.
Those cities not a part of a larger city's metropolitan area in bold.
RankIncorporated placeMetropolitan areaStatePopulation
Land area
Land area
Population
density
Population
density
1New York CityNew York CityNew York783.7310,431.1
2SomervilleBostonMassachusetts10.657,116.5
3PatersonNew York CityNew Jersey21.866,688.1
4San FranciscoSan FranciscoCalifornia120.936,658.9
5CambridgeBostonMassachusetts16.656,314.7
6Jersey CityNew York CityNew Jersey38.646,212.2
7CiceroChicagoIllinois15.155,650.7
8HawthorneLos AngelesCalifornia15.705,359.0
9Daly CitySan FranciscoCalifornia19.585,292.1
10BostonBostonMassachusetts125.435,143.4
11South GateLos AngelesCalifornia19.095,048.9
12Santa AnaLos AngelesCalifornia70.294,808.2
13BellflowerLos AngelesCalifornia15.724,794.1
14InglewoodLos AngelesCalifornia23.674,632.9
15El MonteLos AngelesCalifornia24.734,688.4
16ChicagoChicagoIllinois588.264,582.3
17Miami BeachMiamiFlorida18.214,829.5
18NewarkNew York CityNew Jersey61.644,437.7
19Baldwin ParkLos AngelesCalifornia17.254,396.5
20AlhambraLos AngelesCalifornia19.744,347.7
21PhiladelphiaPhiladelphiaPennsylvania349.884,337.3
22TrentonNew York CityNew Jersey19.844,304.7
23MiamiMiamiFlorida92.384,323.8
24YonkersNew York CityNew York46.834,187.5
25BerkeleySan FranciscoCalifornia27.124,151.6
26NorwalkLos AngelesCalifornia25.074,120.2
27HialeahMiamiFlorida49.834,508.6
28Upper DarbyPhiladelphiaPennsylvania20.384,014.1
30Santa MonicaLos AngelesCalifornia21.393,930.4
31ElizabethNew York CityNew Jersey31.913,916.5

Distributions

The following distributions only include the 125 incorporated places with population densities over 10,000 people per square mile. They do not include the 36 census-designated places, the boroughs of New York City, or the 11 places in Puerto Rico with densities over 10,000.

Metropolitan areas

The following ranks United States metropolitan areas by the number of incorporated places with densities over 10,000 within them. If two or more metropolitan areas have the same number of incorporated places, as is the case of the eight metros with one place, the metro areas are ranked by the densest incorporated place within the metro area.
RankMetropolitan areaPrincipal city10,000+ placesDensest incorporated placeDensity
1New York CityNew York City55Guttenberg
2Greater Los Angeles AreaLos Angeles27Maywood
3Delaware ValleyPhiladelphia13Millbourne
4Miami metropolitan areaMiami7North Bay Village
5Greater BostonBoston7Somerville
6Chicago Metropolitan AreaChicago7Stone Park
7San Francisco Bay AreaSan Francisco/San Jose6San Francisco
8Washington Metropolitan AreaWashington, D.C.3Mount Rainier
9Pittsburgh metropolitan areaPittsburgh3Pennsbury Village
10Louisville-Jefferson County metropolitan areaLouisville1Poplar Hills
11Providence metropolitan areaProvidence1Central Falls
12Dallas–Fort Worth MetroplexDallas1Mobile City
13Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan areaBuffalo1Kenmore
14Portland metropolitan areaPortland1Johnson City
15Metro DetroitDetroit1Hamtramck
16Greater ClevelandCleveland1Lakewood

States and territories

The following ranks the 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and the 5 inhabited U.S. territories by the number of incorporated places with densities over 10,000 people within them. The "10,000+ places" column only includes incorporated places, it does not include census-designated places. If two or more states have the same number of places, as is the case of the 36 states that contain no incorporated places with a density over 10,000, the states are ranked by the densest incorporated place within the state. The density figures for the densest incorporated place within each state and territory are from the 2010 United States Census, and all the data for this ranking is from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The first rank column ranks each state by the number of 10,000+ places in that state The second rank column ranks the most densely populated place in each state or territory
Hawaii officially does not contain any incorporated places, as the city of Honolulu is coextensive with Honolulu County, which makes up the whole island of Oahu. When the U.S. Census Bureau ranks incorporated places by population, it usually includes the Honolulu census-designated place, which is the urban center of Honolulu, in its ranking of incorporated places. Therefore, for this list of the densest incorporated places by state, the Honolulu CDP is considered the densest incorporated place in Hawaii. The District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. territories are also included in this list. Puerto Rico also officially does not contain any incorporated places, as the lowest form of local government in Puerto Rico are the municipios, which are equivalent to counties. For this ranking, the municipios are counted as the incorporated places in Puerto Rico, and the San Juan Municipio is the densest.
In American Samoa, each village is governed by a pulenu'u — as such, each village in American Samoa can be considered to be incorporated for the purposes of the table below. In the Northern Mariana Islands, each municipality is governed by a mayor, and so those municipalities can be considered incorporated — the villages in the Northern Mariana Islands are considered Census-Designated Places. In Guam, each village is governed by a mayor, and so those villages can be considered incorporated. For the purposes of the table below, the major towns of the U.S. Virgin Islands are considered to be incorporated.
Note: this table contains data from the 2010 U.S. Census — because of this, data is more than 9 years old, and the current population density of each jurisdiction may have changed since then.
Rank
State,
federal district
or territory
10,000+
places
Densest incorporated
place
Density Rank
133Guttenberg1
233Maywood3
3 New York23Kaser2
413Millbourne7
57North Bay Village4
67Somerville5
77Stone Park9
81Poplar Hills6
91Central Falls8
101Mount Rainier10
111Mobile City11
121Washington12
131Johnson City13
141Hamtramck14
151Lakewood15
160Velda City16
170San Juan17
180Huetter18
190Landfall19
200Bridgeport20
210Shorewood21
220Charlotte Amalie 22
230Alexandria23
240Glendale24
250Faleniu25
260Bellefonte26
27 Georgia0Clarkston27
280Guadalupe28
29 Washington0Seattle29
300Westwood Hills30
310Sidon31
320Taylorsville32
330West Lafayette33
340Winooski34
350Harahan35
360Honolulu36
370Las Vegas37
380La Vista38
390The Village39
400Browning40
410Carrboro41
420Mongmong-Toto-Maite42
430Fort Yates43
440University Heights44
450Fairfield45
460Chesapeake46
470Mitchellville47
480Manchester48
490Jackson49
500Portland50
510Bayard51
520Tea52
530Irmo53
540East Ridge54
550Ketchikan55
560Saipan56

Populations

, Chicago, and Philadelphia are the only incorporated places in the United States that have a population over 1,000,000 and a population density over 10,000 people per square mile.
Population10,000+ incorporated places
1,000,000+3
100,000 – 999,99914
50,000 – 99,99929
10,000 – 49,99948
1,000 – 9,99926
0 – 9995

Land areas

Population densities