London: One of the World's Largest and Most Influential Cities

London is a global megacity by every metric—population, economy, culture, connectivity.

Scale

• City of London: 1.12 mi², 8,700 residents (financial core)
• Greater London: 607 mi², 8.8M residents (2023)
• London Metropolitan Area: 3,236 mi², 14.3M (includes commuter belt)
• Density: 14,500/mi² (Greater London)—among Europe's highest

Global Rankings

• GDP: ~$600B (city), ~$1.0T (metro) — top 5 globally
• Financial center: #1 or #2 (with NYC) — Global Financial Centres Index
• Air traffic: Heathrow + Gatwick + Stansted + Luton + City = 170M passengers (pre-COVID)
• Languages spoken: 300+
• UNESCO sites: 4 (Tower, Westminster, Greenwich, Kew)

Structure

32 boroughs + City of London. Mayor of London (Sadiq Khan) + London Assembly (strategic). Boroughs handle local services.

Challenges

Housing affordability, transport crowding, inequality, post-Brexit financial passporting, climate adaptation (Thames Barrier).