Largest Cities in Africa

Africa is the second largest and warmest continent on earth. Both the equator and the tropics are the only continent that runs through it. The great natural landscapes of Africa include tropical rainforests, grass-covered savannahs, deserts and steppes.

  • Mayotte
  • Reunion
  • Western Sahara
Area 30,131,536 km2
Population 698,647,000
Population density 21 people per km2
Countries 54
Largest country Sudan with 2,505,813 km2
Smallest Country Seychelles with 452 km2
Languages Arabic, Swahili, Haussa, Somali, Amharish
Highest mountain Kilimanjaro, 5,895 meters
Longest river Lake Assal (Djibouti), 156 meters below sea level
Highest temperature 58 0 C in Al’Azuzuyah (Libya)
Lowest temperature -24 0 C in Ilfrane (Morocco)

Biggest Cities in Africa by Population

The largest city in Africa is Cairo, the capital of Egypt. Located on the banks of the River Nile, Cairo is home to over 20 million people and is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. It has been an important trading center for centuries, connecting people from different parts of Africa and beyond. Today, Cairo is a major cultural hub and economic center, with many museums, mosques, churches, and other attractions drawing millions of tourists each year.

The second largest city in Africa is Lagos, located in Nigeria. With a population of over 13 million people, Lagos serves as a major commercial hub for West Africa and has become one of the continent’s most important economic centers. The city has also developed a vibrant cultural scene with many popular music venues and art galleries attracting visitors from all corners of the globe.

The third largest city in Africa is Kinshasa, located in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). With a population of around 12 million people, Kinshasa serves as an important political center for DRC and Central Africa as well as an influential cultural hub for music and literature throughout the continent. The city also has some impressive monuments such as Grand Mosque which dates back to 1881 AD and remains one of the oldest standing mosques in all of Central Africa.

Ranking City Country Continent Population
1 Cairo Egypt Africa 20,900,715
2 Lagos Nigeria Africa 14,368,443
3 Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 14,342,550
4 Luanda Angola Africa 8,329,909
5 Dar Es Salaam Tanzania Africa 6,701,761
6 Khartoum Sudan Africa 5,828,969
7 Johannesburg South Africa Africa 5,782,858
8 Alexandria Egypt Africa 5,280,775
9 Abidjan Ivory Coast Africa 5,202,873
10 Addis Ababa Ethiopia Africa 4,793,810
11 Nairobi Kenya Africa 4,734,992
12 Cape Town South Africa Africa 4,617,671
13 Kano Nigeria Africa 3,999,161
14 Yaounde Cameroon Africa 3,992,522
15 Ekurhuleni South Africa Africa 3,894,373
16 Casablanca Morocco Africa 3,752,468
17 Douala Cameroon Africa 3,663,338
18 Ibadan Nigeria Africa 3,552,072
19 Antananarivo Madagascar Africa 3,368,696
20 Kumasi Ghana Africa 3,348,173
21 Kampala Uganda Africa 3,298,475
22 Abuja Nigeria Africa 3,277,851
23 Durban South Africa Africa 3,158,424
24 Dakar Senegal Africa 3,140,553
25 Port Harcourt Nigeria Africa 3,020,343
26 Ouagadougou Burkina Faso Africa 2,780,442
27 Lusaka Zambia Africa 2,774,244
28 Algiers Algeria Africa 2,767,772
29 Bamako Mali Africa 2,617,797
30 Pretoria South Africa Africa 2,565,771
31 Mbuji Mayi Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 2,525,374
32 Accra Ghana Africa 2,514,116
33 Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 2,478,373
34 Brazzaville Republic of the Congo Africa 2,388,201
35 Tunis Tunisia Africa 2,365,312
36 Mogadishu Somalia Africa 2,282,120
37 Conakry Guinea Africa 1,938,383
38 Rabat Morocco Africa 1,884,913
39 Lome Togo Africa 1,827,989
40 Benin City Nigeria Africa 1,727,280
41 Matola Mozambique Africa 1,705,997
42 Harare Zimbabwe Africa 1,530,031
43 Monrovia Liberia Africa 1,517,346
44 Kananga Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 1,458,511
45 N Djamena Chad Africa 1,422,658
46 Onitsha Nigeria Africa 1,414,901
47 Nouakchott Mauritania Africa 1,314,747
48 Mombasa Kenya Africa 1,296,086
49 Niamey Niger Africa 1,291,959
50 Kisangani Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 1,261,421
51 Port Elizabeth South Africa Africa 1,253,853
52 Fes Morocco Africa 1,224,191
53 Pointe Noire Republic of the Congo Africa 1,214,392
54 Freetown Sierra Leone Africa 1,202,011
55 Tanger Morocco Africa 1,198,034
56 Tripoli Libya Africa 1,165,196
57 Uyo Nigeria Africa 1,135,886
58 Kigali Rwanda Africa 1,132,212
59 Lilongwe Malawi Africa 1,121,831
60 Mwanza Tanzania Africa 1,120,541
61 Kaduna Nigeria Africa 1,113,321
62 Maputo Mozambique Africa 1,110,588
63 Aba Nigeria Africa 1,081,577
64 Bukavu Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 1,078,113
65 Abomey Calavi Benin Africa 1,056,551
66 Nnewi Nigeria Africa 1,050,971
67 Bujumbura Burundi Africa 1,013,107
68 Marrakech Morocco Africa 1,002,820
69 Hargeysa Somalia Africa 988,827
70 Bobo Dioulasso Burkina Faso Africa 972,235
71 Asmara Eritrea Africa 963,096
72 Ilorin Nigeria Africa 949,977
73 Sekondi Takoradi Ghana Africa 945,630
74 Ikorodu Nigeria Africa 937,726
75 Blantyre Limbe Malawi Africa 932,374
76 Agadir Morocco Africa 923,663
77 Nyala Sudan Africa 922,643
78 Tshikapa Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 919,303
79 Oran Algeria Africa 899,293
80 West Rand South Africa Africa 897,720
81 Jos Nigeria Africa 895,399
82 Bangui Central African Republic Africa 889,342
83 Misratah Libya Africa 881,430
84 Owerri Nigeria Africa 872,715
85 Warri Nigeria Africa 856,052
86 Soshanguve South Africa Africa 853,458
87 Nampula Mozambique Africa 848,207
88 Libreville Gabon Africa 834,315
89 Lubango Angola Africa 828,359
90 Banghazi Libya Africa 824,085
91 Maiduguri Nigeria Africa 786,596
92 Cabinda Angola Africa 777,808
93 Vereeniging South Africa Africa 774,142
94 Umuahia Nigeria Africa 773,933
95 Enugu Nigeria Africa 772,983
96 Bur Sa’id Egypt Africa 737,111
97 Zaria Nigeria Africa 726,283
98 Benguela Angola Africa 715,241
99 Oshogbo Nigeria Africa 713,788
100 Buffalo City South Africa Africa 708,670
101 Zanzibar Tanzania Africa 705,189
102 Lokoja Nigeria Africa 692,161
103 Cotonou Benin Africa 692,060
104 Kitwe Zambia Africa 686,019
105 Bunia Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 679,529
106 Huambo Angola Africa 671,524
107 Merca Somalia Africa 666,481
108 Akure Nigeria Africa 665,635
109 Malanje Angola Africa 665,261
110 Tamale Ghana Africa 642,022
111 Sokoto Nigeria Africa 641,360
112 As Suways Egypt Africa 638,340
113 Bulawayo Zimbabwe Africa 638,299
114 Goma Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 634,308
115 Safaqis Tunisia Africa 630,286
116 Bissau Guinea Bissau Africa 599,825
117 Bauchi Nigeria Africa 597,790
118 Uvira Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 589,842
119 Calabar Nigeria Africa 579,384
120 Djibouti Djibouti Africa 576,268
121 Abakaliki Nigeria Africa 572,139
122 Bouake Ivory Coast Africa 571,987
123 Beira Mozambique Africa 570,022
124 Likasi Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 567,950
125 Bloemfontein South Africa Africa 567,140
126 Mbeya Tanzania Africa 566,176
127 Oujda Morocco Africa 558,635
128 Al Mansurah Egypt Africa 555,732
129 Meknes Morocco Africa 553,866
130 Ogbomosho Nigeria Africa 551,585
131 Ndola Zambia Africa 542,606
132 Cuito Angola Africa 535,518
133 Bamenda Cameroon Africa 533,368
134 Abeokuta Nigeria Africa 532,967
135 Pietermaritzburg South Africa Africa 527,023
136 Mekele Ethiopia Africa 524,025
137 Al Mahallah Al Kubra Egypt Africa 517,660
138 Uige Angola Africa 510,742
139 Rustenburg South Africa Africa 509,479
140 Gombe Nigeria Africa 508,686
141 Kikwit Democratic Republic of the Congo Africa 507,573
142 El Djelfa Algeria Africa 503,508
143 Tanta Egypt Africa 501,534

Africa Climate

Due to its wide extent, the continent’s climate is strongly influenced by the tropics and the equator. On the mainland it is very hot, dry or desert climates combine with dry and humid tropical and equatorial climates. In the far north and south of Africa there is a Mediterranean climate.

Africa

Africa Languages

Over 2,000 languages ​​are spoken in Africa. Besides Arabic, the most widely used languages ​​are Swahili and Haussa, each spoken by more than 10 million people. The other languages ​​are spoken by a few thousand people and only about a dozen languages ​​reach the million mark.

Half of all Africans are younger than 15 years. This means that Africa has the highest proportion of young people in the world. However, only three in 100 people will live to be 65 or older.

The African Sahara is the largest desert in the world. With an area of ​​over 9 million square kilometers, it is larger than the entire Australian continent.

Africa is the continent with the most states: 54 in total.

In Western Sahara, the country in the west of the continent, only one person lives per km2. This makes it the country with the lowest population density in the world.

The oldest evidence of human life – footprints left in volcanic ash – were found near Laetoli near the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania.

Africa has a total of 54 countries – that is more countries than the other continents have! So that you always know which country is where in Africa, they have been divided into the following 5 different areas:

  • North Africa
  • East Africa
  • West Africa
  • Central Africa
  • Southern Africa