United Arab Emirates Cities by Population 2026

United Arab Emirates Overview

The largest city in United Arab Emirates is Dubai, with a population of 3,776,252 people.

United Arab Emirates is a country that is made up of seven emirates. Those are Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, and Umm al-Qaiwain. While the country as a whole has a prime minister and federal president, each emirate has its own ruler that oversees the local governments. The UAE was established in 1971, and since that time, it has seen great population growth. Its largest city is Dubai, which has reached the one million resident milestone with a population of 3.8M. However, there are other cities within the UAE that have high population counts. The second most populous city, Abu Dhabi, has over 3.2M residents.

The majority of people in the UAE live in urbanized areas. Just 14% live in rural areas and towns, while the remaining 86% live in the urbanized cities within the seven emirates. The UAE has seen a steady pattern of growth through the years, which is expected to slow down in the near future. Some experts also anticipate that the economy will be slowing down. Only time will tell how the growth of these major cities and the population that resides within them will change in the future.