List of first-level administrative divisions by population

The following list sorts first-level administrative divisions of countries according to their number of inhabitants. Only administrative units of the highest order are listed. Regions formed for statistical purposes without administrative autonomy, such as the Kantō region in Japan or the eight federal districts of Russia, are not included. Cities, on the other hand, can be counted if they form a first-level administrative unit, such as Shanghai or the capital region of Delhi, which are equivalent to a Chinese province or an Indian state. Administrative units such as Los Angeles County, which has more than ten million inhabitants, are not included in the list as they are already counted as part of the first-level administrative division of California.