In 2007, according to data published by the Population Division of the United Nations, there were 429 urban agglomerations in the World with  over one million inhabitants, for a total population of 1,256 million people.

The regional division of this data was the following in 2007:

- Asia Pacific: 214 metropolises (647 million inhab.)
- North America: 56 metropolises (185 million inhab.)
- Europe: 59 metropolises (140 million inhab.)
- Latin America and The Caribbean: 47 metropolises (150 million inhab.)
- Africa: 53 metropolises (135 million inhab.)

The division in World regions followed by Metropolis includes the Middle East and West Asia in Asia-Pacific. Moreover, most of the former Soviet Union metropolises and Turkey belong to the European region. Major Mexican cities are included in North America.

*List of the World's main metropolises

*List of the World's main metropolises (alphabetical)

*United Nations data (2007).

For more updated information, please consult:

Thomas Brinkhoff. The Principal Agglomerations of the World: www.citypopulation.de