The Difference Between “City” in China and the US

The definition of a "city" (市) in China differs somewhat from that in the US. Generally, cities in China are much larger than those in the US, both in terms of area and population.

China and the US are roughly the same size geographically. However, while China has about 30 provinces, the US is divided into 50 states. In China, a medium-sized province typically has fewer than 20 cities. In contrast, a single US state can have hundreds of cities, and large states like California may have thousands. As a result, a typical Chinese city can be 10 times larger than its US counterpart.

When considering population, at least 100 Chinese cities have populations exceeding one million. Meanwhile, in the US, only about 10 cities surpass the one-million-resident mark.

Because cities in the US are often much smaller and more numerous, people may not be familiar with all of their names or locations. In many cases, metropolitan area names are used informally instead of the actual city name. For example, if someone asks where I live, I’ll say “Boston” instead of “Brookline,” my actual hometown, since many people might not know where Brookline is.