What is the largest city in Brazil?

The largest city in Brazil is São Paulo.

Founded by Jesuit priests in 1554, São Paulo grew from a colonial settlement into Brazil’s leading commercial, industrial and financial center. It stands on a plateau in southeastern Brazil, well inland from the Atlantic coast.

The city itself has more than 11 million residents, while Greater São Paulo has more than 20 million. That distinction explains why population figures can vary: some sources count the municipality, while others count the wider metropolitan area. São Paulo surpassed Rio de Janeiro as Brazil’s most populous city around 1960.

Brasília is Brazil’s capital, and Rio de Janeiro is internationally famous and historically served as the capital, but neither is the country’s largest city. São Paulo’s name honors Saint Paul the Apostle, and its residents are known as paulistanos.