Yemen: cities by population
Yemen has a population of 42,961,653 (UN estimate, 2026), with Sanaa as its capital. The 50 largest of its 54 recorded towns and cities, ranked.
+119%
since 2000 (19,624,141)
+65%
projected by 2050 (70,976,403)
81
people per km²
Figures are the latest available in GeoNames (CC BY 4.0), which draws on national censuses of varying dates — treat them as recent, not same-year. Country totals are UN World Population Prospects 2024 (medium variant) where the UN lists the country separately; the handful it reports under a parent state keep a GeoNames figure and are marked as such. Sources & method.
Largest cities in Yemen
| # | Place | Region | Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sanaa | Amanat Alasimah | 1,937,451 |
| 2 | Aden | Aden | 1,079,670 |
| 3 | Taiz | Ta‘izz | 940,600 |
| 4 | Ibb | Ibb Governorate | 771,514 |
| 5 | Al Ḩudaydah | Al Hudaydah | 734,699 |
| 6 | Mukalla | Muhafazat Hadramaout | 594,951 |
| 7 | Dhamār | Dhamār | 160,114 |
| 8 | ‘Amrān | Omran | 90,792 |
| 9 | Sayyān | Sanaa Governorate | 69,404 |
| 10 | Zabīd | Al Hudaydah | 52,590 |
| 11 | Sa'dah | Şa‘dah | 51,870 |
| 12 | Bājil | Al Hudaydah | 48,218 |
| 13 | Ḩajjah | Ḩajjah | 43,549 |
| 14 | Dhī as Sufāl | Ibb Governorate | 37,997 |
| 15 | Al Bayda | Al Bayda | 37,821 |
| 16 | Ataq | Shabwah | 37,315 |
| 17 | Bayt al Faqīh | Al Hudaydah | 34,204 |
| 18 | Yarīm | Ibb Governorate | 33,050 |
| 19 | Saḩar | Sanaa Governorate | 31,859 |
| 20 | Laḩij | Laḩij | 23,375 |
| 21 | Ghayl Bā Wazīr | Muhafazat Hadramaout | 21,259 |
| 22 | Zinjibār | Abyan Governorate | 19,879 |
| 23 | Al Ḩazm | Al Jawf | 18,241 |
| 24 | Ma'rib | Ma’rib | 16,794 |
| 25 | Mocha | Ta‘izz | 16,794 |
| 26 | Aḑ Ḑāli‘ | Aḑ Ḑāli‘ | 14,760 |
| 27 | Jawf al Maqbābah | Abyan Governorate | 14,175 |
| 28 | Al Ghayz̧ah | Al Mahrah Governorate | 10,948 |
| 29 | Al Maḩwīt | Al Mahwit Governorate | 10,593 |
| 30 | Jadder Cemetery | Amanat Alasimah | 10,000 |
| 31 | Hadibu | Soqatra | 8,545 |
| 32 | Shibām | Muhafazat Hadramaout | 7,000 |
| 33 | CPF | Muhafazat Hadramaout | 6,000 |
| 34 | Al Madakisha | Laḩij | 5,000 |
| 35 | Village of ALAMRAH | Ta‘izz | 4,500 |
| 36 | Qalansīyah | Soqatra | 3,500 |
| 37 | Khimār | Shabwah | 3,000 |
| 38 | Kilmia | Muhafazat Hadramaout | 2,013 |
| 39 | Al-Medy Village, قرية المدي | Dhamār | 2,000 |
| 40 | Al Qabyal | Laḩij | 2,000 |
| 41 | Al Madu | Aḑ Ḑāli‘ | 1,986 |
| 42 | Ahl Mohammed bin Ahmed | Abyan Governorate | 1,800 |
| 43 | AL-khashā upper | Shabwah | 1,100 |
| 44 | Salābah | Shabwah | 1,000 |
| 45 | Najd Al Tha'ub | Laḩij | 1,000 |
| 46 | AL-khashā Lower | Shabwah | 800 |
| 47 | Qaryat Al kudshi al Ra'inah | Ta‘izz | 750 |
| 48 | Suḩayl Shibām | Muhafazat Hadramaout | 645 |
| 49 | Al ‘Inān | Al Jawf | 100 |
| 50 | Sāqayn | Şa‘dah | 41 |
Twenty years earlier: Yemen in the 2005 World Gazetteer — population then 19,600,009.
Common questions
What is the population of Yemen?
Yemen has a population of 42,961,653, the UN World Population Prospects estimate for 2026. The UN's medium-variant projection for 2050 is 70,976,403 — a forecast, not a measurement.
What is the capital of Yemen?
Sanaa.