Which U.S. city had 1,603,797 residents in the 2020 census?

Philadelphia had 1,603,797 residents in the 2020 census. That count made it the sixth-largest U.S. city, after New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston and Phoenix.

Philadelphia is Pennsylvania’s largest city and one of the oldest major cities in the United States. Founded by William Penn in 1682, it became a major port and an important centre of the American Revolution. The Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution were debated and adopted there.

The 1,603,797 figure refers to Philadelphia city proper, whose boundaries match Philadelphia County. It is not the population of the wider Philadelphia metropolitan area, which includes communities in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.

Philadelphia’s 2020 count was higher than its 2010 census population of 1,526,006. A frequent mix-up is placing it fifth: Phoenix ranked fifth with 1,608,139 residents, only a few thousand more than Philadelphia.