Largest Cities in Indiana: Ranked by Population

The largest city in Indiana in our data is Indianapolis, IN, with an estimated 1,588,961 people, followed by Fort Wayne, IN (334,122) and South Bend, IN (280,498). This list ranks the top 50 places among the 135 Indiana communities with at least 5,000 residents.

What are the top 50 in Indiana?

How big are the largest cities in Indiana?

Of the 135 places with pages, 8 have more than 100,000 residents, 33 have between 25,000 and 100,000, and 94 have fewer than 25,000. The median place has about 13,565 people. The ten largest places account for about 56% of the combined population of all pages, which shows how concentrated the state's population is across communities. Lake County contributes 9 of the top 50.

Which counties do the top 50 belong to?

The 50 places on this list are spread across 29 counties of Indiana. Lake County has 9 (Hammond, Gary, Merrillville, Crown Point, Schererville, Hobart, East Chicago, Munster, Hig); Hamilton County has 4 (Carmel, Fishers, Noblesville, Westfield); St. Joseph County has 3 (South Bend, Mishawaka, Granger). Counties with several entries are usually centers of a metropolitan area, where one large city is surrounded by many suburbs that each pass the 5,000-resident threshold.

How does Indiana compare with the rest of the country?

The median Indiana place with a page has about 13,565 residents, compared with about 13,459 nationwide, so the state's typical community is about the same size as the national typical place. Indianapolis, IN ranks 36th among all US places by estimated population in our data. The state has 677 communities in total, of which 135 reach 5,000 residents. See the national ranking of the largest cities for comparison.

Quick answers about Indiana cities

• Which is the largest city in Indiana? Indianapolis (1,588,961 people).
• How many Indiana cities have more than 100,000 people? 8 in our data.
• How many have 25,000 to 100,000? 33.
• What is the typical size? About 13,565 residents for a place with a page.

How is this ranking made?

The data comes from the SimpleMaps US Cities Database, which gives each place an estimated population and a density in people per square kilometer. We convert density to people per square mile and rank the places with at least 5,000 residents. Boundaries matter: a city that includes large parks or farmland scores lower on density than a compact city of the same size, and population estimates can include areas that share a city's ZIP codes. Read why population figures differ and how density is calculated before you quote a number.

Where to go next

Rankings use dataset estimates, not official counts.