United States metropolitan area

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In the United States, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has produced a formal definition of metropolitan areas. These are referred to as "Metropolitan Statistical Areas" (MSAs) and "Combined Statistical Areas." An earlier version of the MSA was the "Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area" (SMSA). MSAs are composed of counties and for some county equivalents[1]. In New England, because of the greater importance of towns over counties, similar areas based on town units, known as New England City and Town Areas (NECTAs), are additionally defined.

MSAs are delineated on the basis of a central urbanized area—a contiguous area of relatively high population density. The counties containing the core urbanized area are known as the central counties of the MSA. Additional surrounding counties (known as outlying counties) can be included in the MSA if these counties have strong social and economic ties to the central counties as measured by commuting and employment.

MSAs are used for official purposes, but they are not the only estimates of metro area populations available. The appropriate figures for some metro areas are much debated, and in some cases reputable sources provide figures which differ by millions. The most contentious examples include the Greater Los Angeles Area, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Greater Cleveland. The official definitions used for the last U.S. Census differed from those for previous censuses, making comparisons difficult even between official figures at different dates (comparing 2000 with 1990, Baltimore was separated from Washington, D.C., but West Palm Beach was combined with Miami-Fort Lauderdale, which made a considerable difference to the rankings of both metros). Care should also be taken when comparing MSA figures with population figures for cities or metro areas outside the U.S., which may be based on substantially different boundary systems and definitions of terms. Additionally, MSA boundaries do not stretch into neighboring Canada or Mexico, so the actual metropolitan populations of border cities such as Detroit, Buffalo, El Paso and San Diego are often substantially larger than their MSA figures.

As of June 2003, there is now an additional classification, that of a “Metropolitan Division.” The term metropolitan division is used to refer to a county or group of closely-tied contiguous counties that serve as a distinct employment region within a metropolitan statistical area that has a population core of at least 2.5 million. While a metropolitan division is a subdivision of a larger metropolitan statistical area, it often functions as a distinct social, economic, and cultural area within the larger region.

The following is a list of the 25 most populated metropolitan statistical areas and metropolitan divisions in the United States, according to the July 1, 2006 U.S. Census Bureau estimates:[2]

Rank Metropolitan Area Metropolitan Division State(s) Population
1 New York–Northern New Jersey–Long Island   NY–NJ–PA 18,818,536
  Edison NJ 2,308,777
  Nassau–Suffolk NY 2,795,377
  Newark–Union NJ–PA 2,152,757
  New York–White Plains–Wayne NY–NJ 11,561,625
2 Los Angeles–Long Beach–Santa Ana   CA 12,950,129
  Los Angeles–Long Beach–Glendale CA 9,948,081
  Santa Ana–Anaheim–Irvine CA 3,002,048
3 Chicago–Naperville–Joliet   IL–IN–WI 9,505,748
  Chicago–Naperville–Joliet IL 7,929,775
  Gary IN 700,896
  Lake County–Kenosha County IL–WI 875,077
4 Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington   TX 6,003,967
  Dallas–Plano–Irving TX 4,019,499
  Fort Worth–Arlington TX 1,984,468
5 Philadelphia–Camden–Wilmington PA–NJ–DE–MD 5,826,742
  Camden NJ 1,249,659
  Philadelphia PA 3,885,395
  Wilmington DE–MD–NJ 691,688
6 Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown   TX 5,539,949
7 Miami–Fort Lauderdale–Pompano Beach   FL 5,463,857
  Fort Lauderdale–Pompano Beach–Deerfield Beach FL 1,787,636
  Miami–Miami Beach–Kendall FL 2,402,208
  West Palm Beach–Boca Raton–Boynton Beach FL 1,274,013
8 Washington–Arlington–Alexandria   DC–VA–MD–WV 5,290,400
  Bethesda–Frederick–Gaithersburg MD 1,155,069
  Washington–Arlington–Alexandria DC–MD–VA–WV 4,135,331
9 Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Marietta   GA 5,138,223
10 Detroit–Warren–Livonia   MI 4,468,966
  Detroit–Livonia–Dearborn MI 1,971,853
  Warren–Troy–Farmington Hills MI 2,497,113
11 Boston–Cambridge–Quincy   MA–NH 4,455,217
  Boston–Quincy MA 1,835,986
  Cambridge–Newton–Framingham MA 1,467,016
  Essex County MA 735,958
  Rockingham County–Strafford County NH 416,257
12 San Francisco–Oakland–Fremont   CA 4,180,027
  Oakland–Fremont–Hayward CA 2,481,745
  San Francisco–San Mateo–Redwood City CA 1,698,282
13 Phoenix–Mesa–Scottsdale   AZ 4,039,182
14 Riverside–San Bernardino–Ontario   CA 4,026,135
15 Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue   WA 3,263,497
  Seattle–Bellevue–Everett WA 2,496,619
  Tacoma WA 766,878
16 Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington   MN–WI 3,175,041
17 San Diego–Carlsbad–San Marcos[1]   CA 2,941,454
18 St. Louis   MO–IL 2,796,368
19 Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater   FL 2,697,731
20 Baltimore–Towson   MD 2,658,405
21 Denver–Aurora   CO 2,408,750
22 Pittsburgh   PA–WV 2,370,776
23 Portland–Vancouver–Beaverton   OR–WA 2,137,565
24 Cleveland–Elyria–Mentor   OH 2,114,155
25 Cincinnati–Middletown   OH 2,104,218
For all U.S. Metropolitan Statistical Areas, see the Table of United States Metropolitan Statistical Areas.
For the most populous U.S. metropolitan areas, see the Table of United States primary census statistical areas.


  1. ^ The area is also included together with the city of Tijuana in Mexico in the bi-national conurbation known as the San Diego-Tijuana Metropolitan Area.

U.S. Census Bureau statistical areas by state, district, or territory


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