Below are the urban areas with more than 100,000 inhabitants in Nicaragua ranked by population.
Urban Area (or urban agglomeration) population refers to the population contained within the contours of a contiguous territory inhabited at urban density levels, typically comprising a city and its surrounding suburban fringe.
| Rank | Urban Area | Population Estimate (2025) | 1 Year Change (over 2024) | Land Area (Km²) | Density (P/Km²) | Global Rank | Projections (2030) | Projections (2050) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Managua | 1,315,865 | 0.52% | 220 | 5,981 | 389 | 1,349,670 | 1,416,808 |
| 2 | Masaya | 156,536 | 2.08% | 20 | 7,827 | 3,869 | 160,305 | 170,905 |
| 3 | León | 156,438 | 0.58% | 28 | 5,587 | 3,876 | 163,870 | 182,359 |
| 4 | Matagalpa | 131,533 | 1.22% | 14 | 9,395 | 4,644 | 149,881 | 192,144 |
| 5 | Esteli | 111,513 | 0.59% | 19 | 5,869 | 5,537 | 114,664 | 127,875 |
| 6 | Bilwi | 106,447 | 3.32% | 19 | 5,602 | 5,803 | 123,806 | 200,859 |
| 7 | Chinandega | 103,134 | 0.56% | 15 | 6,876 | 6,001 | 113,401 | 125,258 |
| 8 | Granada | 96,971 | 1.26% | 17 | 5,704 | 6,374 | 99,363 | 103,626 |
| 9 | Tipitapa | 80,368 | 2.21% | 21 | 3,827 | 7,764 | 84,492 | 98,451 |
| 10 | Jinotega | 78,901 | 1.08% | 9 | 8,767 | 7,907 | 84,616 | 105,892 |
| 11 | San Andrés | 60,867 | 0.93% | 13 | 4,682 | 10,194 | 63,610 | 66,647 |
| 12 | Juigalpa | 51,319 | – | 11 | 4,665 | 11,940 | 52,785 | 57,293 |
Source: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025). World Urbanization Prospects: The 2025 Revision, Online Edition.