Skip to content
World Measure
Capital city · Iraq · Asia

Baghdad

Iraq
City population
7,216,000
#1
in Iraq
#1
in Baghdad
#39
worldwide
Baghdad
33.341, 44.401
Share of Iraq
15.3%
Of the national population
Elevation
41 m
Approximate — modelled, not surveyed
Capital city
National
The capital of Iraq
Time zone
Asia/Baghdad
IANA zone identifier

About Baghdad

With a metropolitan population of 7,511,000, Baghdad ranks among Asia's largest cities. The city proper holds 7,216,000 residents at a density of 11,161 people per km², supporting an annual growth rate of 2.2%. Founded in 762, Baghdad sits at 41 meters elevation in Iraq.

Baghdad International Airport and New Al Muthana Air Base (BGW) serve the city's air transport needs. Ammar Moussa Kadhum leads the municipality.

This summary is AI-generated from the figures on this page. The figures themselves come from the sources cited beside each value.

Position in Iraq
#1of 95
LargestSmallest
Position in Baghdad
#1of 4
LargestSmallest
Metro population
7,511,000
0.090% of world population
Archive estimate
Annual growth
+2.15%
Archive estimate
Density
11,161/km²
673 km² metro area

Key Facts

Country
Iraq
Region
Baghdad
Rank in region
#1of 4
Founded
762
Leadership
Ammar Moussa Kadhum
Coordinates
33.341, 44.401
Record updated
14 February 2024
Entry edited, not measured

City population, GeoNames. GeoNames publishes no year for its population figures, so “record updated” is when the entry was last edited — not the date the population was measured. Elevation is modelled from a digital elevation model rather than surveyed, so it is approximate.

Nearby Cities

All 95 in Iraq

Closest listed cities by great-circle distance from the city centre.

8KMSadr City1.21M people20KMAbū Ghurayb900K people31KMAl Maḩmūdīyah350K people50KMBaqubah153K people51KMNāḩiyat al Iskandarīyah101K people

Compared with the World's Largest Cities

City-proper population against the fifteen largest cities in the dataset.

  1. Shanghai24.9M
  2. Beijing19M
  3. Shenzhen17.5M
  4. Guangzhou16.1M
  5. Kinshasa16M
  6. Istanbul15.7M
  7. Lagos15.4M
  8. Ho Chi Minh City14M
  9. Chengdu13.6M
  10. Lahore13M
  11. Mumbai12.7M
  12. São Paulo12.4M
  13. Mexico City12.3M
  14. Karachi11.6M
  15. Tianjin11.1M
  16. Baghdad7.22M
City-proper figures only. Administrative boundaries differ between countries, so these are not directly comparable to metropolitan-area estimates.
Baghdad compared with the fifteen largest cities
NameCity population
Shanghai24.9M
Beijing19M
Shenzhen17.5M
Guangzhou16.1M
Kinshasa16M
Istanbul15.7M
Lagos15.4M
Ho Chi Minh City14M
Chengdu13.6M
Lahore13M
Mumbai12.7M
São Paulo12.4M
Mexico City12.3M
Karachi11.6M
Tianjin11.1M
Baghdad7.22M

Airports

Scheduled-service airports within 100 km, nearest first.

  • Baghdad International Airport / New Al Muthana Air BaseBGW

    18 km from the city centre

Source: OurAirports, matched by distance.

Population Trend in Iraq

No free source publishes city population back to 1950, so the parent country's series is shown instead.

020M40M60M80M100M1950197520002025205020752100projected →
This is Iraq's national population, not Baghdad's. Source: UN World Population Prospects 2024.
Iraq population, 1950 to 2100
YearPopulation
19505,653,350
19607,022,052
19709,735,611
198013,591,992
199017,581,206
200024,424,056
201031,045,366
202042,116,605
203051,937,208
204062,223,211
205071,928,750
206080,520,191
207087,995,949
208093,761,929
209098,003,974
2100100,649,056

Baghdad Population FAQ

What is the population of Baghdad?

Baghdad has a city population of 7,216,000. That is the population within the city's own boundary, not its wider metropolitan area. City population, GeoNames.

Where is Baghdad?

Baghdad is in Baghdad, Iraq. Its coordinates are 33.341, 44.401.

How big is Baghdad compared with other cities in Iraq?

It is the 1st largest of the 95 cities listed in Iraq, holding 15.3% of the national population.

Explore

IraqAll 95 citiesCountry profileIraq population & indicators