How Many Cities in England? It's Complicated.

England has 51 officially designated cities (as of 2024)—but "city status" is a formal honor, not a demographic or administrative category.

What Makes a City in England?

• Granted by the monarch (via letters patent) on advice of ministers.
• Historically: presence of a Anglican cathedral (pre-1888).
• Since 1907: based on population, significance, royal occasions (jubilees, millennium, coronation).
• No automatic criteria (population, cathedral, university). Some large towns (Reading, Northampton, Luton) are not cities; some small places (Wells pop. ~11k, St Davids ~1.8k) are.

Recent Awards

• 2022 Platinum Jubilee: Bangor (NI), Colchester, Doncaster, Douglas (IOM), Dunfermline (Scot), Milton Keynes, Stanley (Falklands), Wrexham (Wales). England: Colchester, Doncaster, Milton Keynes.
• 2012 Diamond Jubilee: Chelmsford, Perth, St Asaph.
• 2000 Millennium: Brighton & Hove, Inverness, Wolverhampton.

Administrative Reality

Since the Local Government Act 1972, "city" has no administrative function. Local government units are: district, borough, city (borough), metropolitan borough, unitary authority, London borough. A "city council" may govern a district/borough with city status (e.g., City of Canterbury, City of Winchester).

Current 51 English Cities (alphabetical)

Bath, Birmingham, Bradford, Brighton & Hove, Bristol, Cambridge, Canterbury, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Chester, Chichester, Colchester, Coventry, Derby, Doncaster, Durham, Ely, Exeter, Gloucester, Hereford, Hull, Lancaster, Leeds, Leicester, Lichfield, Lincoln, Liverpool, London (City of London + Westminster), Manchester, Milton Keynes, Newcastle upon Tyne, Norwich, Nottingham, Oxford, Peterborough, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Preston, Ripon, Salford, Salisbury, Sheffield, Southampton, St Albans, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Truro, Wakefield, Wells, Winchester, Wolverhampton, Worcester, York.

London is unique: the City of London (square mile) and City of Westminster are separate cities within Greater London.