The Philippines has six metropolitan areas established either through national legislation or urban planning that have a designated governing body: Metro Baguio (MBLISTTDA), Metro Cebu (MCDCB), Metro Davao (MDDA), Metro Iloilo–Guimaras (MIGEDC), Metro Manila (MMDA), and Metro Naga (MNDC),
Among these six, three are officially recognized by the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) as "metropolitan centers" due to their prominence, population, size, and economy: Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao. These centers serve as the primary economic hubs for the country's three major island groups. Metro Manila is the national capital region and the center for government and finance in Luzon and the Philippines in general; Metro Cebu is the key hub for trade and commerce in the Visayas; and Metro Davao is the major gateway and service center for Mindanao. Of the three, Metro Manila is the most populous, while Metro Davao is the largest in terms of land area, regardless of its definition.
Six other metropolitan areas have also been identified in various planning frameworks: Metro Batangas, Metro Bacolod, Metro Cagayan de Oro, Metro Clark, Metro Dagupan, and Metro Olongapo. All six were identified as metropolitan areas in earlier planning frameworks of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), DEPDev's predecessor. Although they were no longer included as metropolitan areas in the 2017–2022 Philippine Development Plan, they continued to be recognized as metropolitan areas in other planning frameworks and by other sectors.
Despite these official definitions, the actual extent of continuous urbanization often exceeds administrative boundaries. The built-up area of Metro Manila, for instance, has long extended into the neighboring provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal.
List Metropolitan centers Metro Manila Metro Cebu Metro Davao
Regional centers
Antipolo Bacolod Baguio Balanga Baliwag Batangas City Butuan Cabanatuan Calamba Calapan Clark Cotabato City Dagupan Dasmariñas Dipolog Eastern Kalinga (Tabuk–Pinukpuk–Rizal) General Santos Iloilo Jolo Koronadal Laoag Legazpi Lucena Malolos Naga (Camarines Sur) Ormoc Pagadian Puerto Princesa San Fernando (La Union) Santiago Subic–Olongapo Surigao City Tacloban Tagbilaran Tagum Tarlac City Tuguegarao Zamboanga City
Sub-regional centers
Alaminos Alfonso Lista Arayat Aurora Bacoor Banaue Bangued Baras Bauko Bayog Besao Binangonan Bislig Biñan Boac Bogo Bongao Bontoc Buug Cabuyao Cainta Calbayog Capas Catbalogan Cauayan Concepcion Daet Danglas Digos Dumaguete Dumalinao Dumangas Dumingag Estancia Flora General Mariano Alvarez General Trias Gingoog Glan Hagonoy Ilagan Iligan Imus Ipil Iriga Isabela–Lamitan Jordan Kabankalan Kabasalan Kalibo Kiangan Kidapawan La Paz Laguindingan Lamut Langiden Ligao Lipa Lubao Luna Mabalacat Mahayag Malay Malaybalay Malita Maramag Marawi Margosatubig Marilao Mariveles Masbate City Mati Matnog Mexico Meycauayan Miagao Midsayap Molave Nasugbu Ozamiz Panabo Parang Passi Peñarrubia Pidigan Pili Polomolok Pudtol Rodriguez Romblon Roxas Sadanga San Carlos (Negros Occidental) San Fernando (Pampanga) San Francisco San Ildefonso San Isidro San Jose (Occidental Mindoro) San Jose (Nueva Ecija) San Jose de Buenavista San Jose del Monte San Mateo San Miguel San Pablo San Pedro Santa Ana Santa Marcela Santa Maria Santa Rosa Santo Tomas Sariaya Silang Sindangan Sorsogon City Tabaco Tacurong Tanauan Tandag Tanza Taytay Tayum Toledo Trece Martires Tubigon Tubo Tubod Urdaneta Valencia Vigan Virac
History In 2020, 54% of the Philippine population lived in urban areas encompassing many cities. Growth in some cities has led to urban spillover in adjacent municipalities.
Metro Manila was created in 1975 with the establishment of the Metro Manila Commission. This commission, reorganized in 1986 as the Metro Manila Authority, was renamed in 1995 as the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA). While MMDA has no power over the local government units (LGUs) it covers, it has worked with the LGUs to solve issues that affect all of them such as traffic management.
The practice of creating an intercity board or agency to determine the limits of a metropolitan area has become common. A number of proposals have been created to create similar metropolitan arrangements in other areas of the country. In 1997, Cebu created the Metropolitan Cebu Development Council (MCDC), which was renamed the Metropolitan Cebu Development and Coordinating Board (MCDCB) in 2011. In 2022, Baguio and Davao created their own metropolitan boards. Other proposed metropolitan boards include ones for Bulacan and Bataan.
List of built-up urban areas The following table lists urban areas in the Philippines, with a population of over 500,000, according to Demographia's "World Urban Areas" study as of 2023. Demographia defines an urban area as a continuously built up land mass of urban development that is within a labor and housing market, without regard for administrative boundaries.
Rank Urban Area Est. Population Built-up Area (sq miles) Built-up Area (sq km) Pop. Density (per sq miles) Pop. Density (per sq km) 1 Manila 24,156,000 738 1,911 32,732 12,638 2 Cebu City 2,482,000 79 205 31,418 12,130 3 Davao City 1,379,000 50 130 27,580 10,649 4 Cagayan de Oro 723,000 27 70 26,778 10,339 5 Angeles City 712,000 72 186 9,889 3,818 6 Bacolod 611,000 32 83 19,094 7,372 7 Iloilo City 542,000 35 91 15,486 5,979 8 Zamboanga City 539,000 21 54 25,667 9,910 9 General Santos 529,000 36 93 14,694 5,674
Gallery
See also List of cities in the Philippines List of metropolitan areas in Asia List of urban agglomerations in Asia
Notes
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