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World Measure
The population almanac240 countries · 31,365 cities · UN WPP 2024
City profile · China · Asia

Kunming

Yunnan · China
City population
3,855,346
#30
in China
#1
in Yunnan
#85
worldwide
BeijingKunming
25.039, 102.718 · 2,087 km from Beijing
City population
3,855,346
Within the city boundary, not a metro area
Rank in China
#30
of 2,091 cities of 15,000+
World rank
#85
of 31,365 cities listed
Share of China
0.3%
of the national population

About Kunming

Located 2,087 km from Beijing, Kunming holds a population of 3.86 million, ranking 85th globally and 30th among Chinese cities. The city is the largest in Yunnan province, where it accounts for a substantial share of the region's urban population. Three cities with populations between 106,000 and 132,000 lie within 32 km, clustered around Kunming's immediate vicinity.

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

Position in China
#30of 2,091
LargestSmallest
Position in Yunnan
#1of 117
LargestSmallest

Key Facts

Country
China
Region
Yunnan
Rank in region
#1of 117
Distance to capital
2,087 km
to Beijing
Elevation
1,895 m
Approximate — modelled, not surveyed
Time zone
Asia/Shanghai
Coordinates
25.039, 102.718
Record updated
2026-04-13
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 2,091 in China

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

8KMMajie132K people27KMAnning107K people32KMHaikou113K people67KMShilin55K people69KMLongquan92K 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. Kunming3.86M
City-proper figures only. Administrative boundaries differ between countries, so these are not directly comparable to metropolitan-area estimates.
Kunming 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
Kunming3.86M

Kunming Population FAQ

What is the population of Kunming?

Kunming has a city population of 3,855,346. That is the population within the city's own boundary, not its wider metropolitan area. City population, GeoNames.

Where is Kunming?

Kunming is in Yunnan, China, 2,087 km from the capital, Beijing. Its coordinates are 25.039, 102.718.

How big is Kunming compared with other cities in China?

It is the 30th largest of the 2,091 cities of 15,000 or more listed in China, holding 0.3% of the national population.

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ChinaAll 2,091 citiesYunnan117 cities in the regionCountry profileChina population & indicators