Jakarta Overtakes Tokyo as World's Most Populous City in New UN Report

According to a new report from the United Nations, Jakarta is now the world's most populous city, overtaking Japan's Tokyo for the number one spot.

Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, has seen incredible population growth within the last few decades, soaring from a city of 10 million people in 1971 to a city of almost 42 million people in 2025.

In fact, the city has grown so fast over such a short period of time that Indonesia no longer has the infrastructure to support the city, which was originally built on a low-lying, swampy plain. Illegal pumping of groundwater and the massive weight of thousands of buildings have led to drastic land subsidence– Jakarta is sinking at a rate of around 4-12 inches per year, and some estimates predict that the entirety of North Jakarta could be underwater by 2050.

Because of this, Indonesia has confirmed that they will be moving their capital to the city of Nusantara, on the island of Borneo, within the next few years. This is expected to slow the growth of Jakarta, possibly allowing the government to take control of the city's environmental situation. However, a lack of funding and construction issues have delayed the project– Indonesia claims that their new capital will be complete in 2028, but it is yet to be seen whether they can successfully reach that target.

Meanwhile, the report's second-place city is also at risk of flooding– Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, came in at number two on the list, with a population of 36.6 million people. Due to its low-lying surroundings and frequent monsoons, Dhaka floods almost annually, yet its population continues to grow at an unprecedented rate. While Dhaka's growth rate is also expected to slow slightly within the next few decades, the UN report predicts that the capital will overtake Jakarta as the most populous city in the world by 2050.

Next, Tokyo came in at number three, a surprise for many. The Greater Tokyo area initially became the world's most populous city in 1955 after a post-World War II economic boom, and it had kept the position until this year.

Contrasting against the high birth rate of cities like Jakarta and Dhaka, located in lesser-developed countries, Tokyo is experiencing a dramatic drop in births. The Japanese government is currently attempting to offer additional incentives to increase the fertility rate across the city, which stood at 0.99 in 2023– well below the 2.1 needed to sustain a population.

As a whole, Japan is suffering from a quickly aging population, with a nationwide birth rate of 1.2 that represents a wider issue across East Asia. China's birth rate stands at 1.2 as well, Taiwan's fertility rate is 1.1, and South Korea's is a mere 0.9. By comparison, the fertility rates of Indonesia and Bangladesh were 2.13 and 2.16 in 2023, respectively, allowing them to maintain consistent population growth throughout the last decade.

Six of the other seven cities among the top 10 were located in Asia, consisting of New Delhi (30.2 million), Shanghai (29.6 million), Guangzhou (27.6 million), Cairo (25.6 million), Manila (24.7 million), Kolkata (22.5 million), and Seoul (22.5 million). Of the top 10, Cairo was the only megacity not located in Asia, being the capital of Egypt.

As a whole, the report found that 45% of Earth's population now lives in cities, representing a worldwide shift towards urbanization. Furthermore, an additional 36% reside in towns, meaning that cities and towns now contain a staggering 81% of the global population.

In 1975, just 8 megacities – urban areas with over 10 million inhabitants – existed in the world. Now, that number stands at 33 in 2025, 19 of which are in Asia.

While urbanization often leads to increased habitat loss and pollution, the increased population density can have several benefits for the enviroment, like decreasing per capita energy consumption. Urbanization also preserves more rural land for natural purposes– though major issues like waste management and biodiversity decline must be addressed before such benefits can be reaped.

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