Sapporo: population and official figures

In depth

• Economy, jobs and prices in Sapporo: Taxable income for municipal resident tax in Sapporo averaged 3.63 million yen per taxpayer in fiscal 2024, 127th lowest of 262 cities and below the national average of 3,933.7 thousand yen per taxpayer. It is income before deductions, so it is not take-home pay.
• Health in Sapporo: Sapporo had 172 general hospitals (hospitals other than psychiatric ones) in 2023, or 8.72 per 100,000 residents, 31st highest of 262 cities, above the national figure (5.60).
• Education in Sapporo: Sapporo had 201 primary schools with 87,431 pupils and 5,341 full-time teachers in May 2024.
• Poverty and living standards in Sapporo: 43.6% of private households in Sapporo were one-person households at the 2020 census (422,160), 20th highest of 262 cities, above the national figure (38.0%).
• Government budget and revenue in Sapporo: The municipal government of Sapporo took in 1.23 trillion yen in fiscal 2022 (final accounts), 622,197 yen per resident, 15th highest of 262 cities.

Notes from the UN table: Excluding diplomatic personnel outside the country and foreign military and civilian personnel and their dependants stationed in the area. For the 2020 census, urban areas are “Densely Inhabited Districts”, defined as areas within a municipality that is composed of a group of contiguous Basic Unit Blocks, each of which has a population density of 4,000 inhabitants or more per square kilometer and whose total population exceeds 5,000 as of 1 October 2020. The detailed methodological explanation is available at https://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/chiri/did/1-1.html Excluding diplomatic personnel outside the country and foreign military and civilian personnel and their dependants stationed in the area. For the 2020 census, urban areas are “Densely Inhabited Districts”, defined as areas within a municipality that is composed of a group of contiguous Basic Unit Blocks, each of which has a population density of 4,000 inhabitants or more per square kilometer and whose total population exceeds 5,000 as of 1 October 2020. The detailed methodological explanation is available at https://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/chiri/did/1-1.html Excluding diplomatic personnel outside the country and foreign military and civilian personnel and their dependants stationed in the area. For the 2020 census, urban areas are “Densely Inhabited Districts”, defined as areas within a municipality that is composed of a group of contiguous Basic Unit Blocks, each of which has a population density of 4,000 inhabitants or more per square kilometer and whose total population exceeds 5,000 as of 1 October 2020. The detailed methodological explanation is available at https://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/chiri/did/1-1.html Land areas are based on the "Municipalities Area Statistics of Japan, 2015" published by the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

Who runs Sapporo?

In Japan, cities and towns are run by municipalities: Mayor and municipal assembly both directly elected for four years. Primary and lower secondary schools, welfare, waste, water, residents' registers, disaster response. Large 'designated cities' (20) take on prefectural tasks and are divided into administrative wards whose heads are officials, not elected.

How local power works in Japan

Cities of a similar size in Japan

• Tokyo 9,733,276
• Yokohama 3,777,491
• Osaka 2,752,412
• Nagoya 2,332,176
• Fukuoka 1,612,392
• Kawasaki 1,538,262
• Kobe 1,525,152
• Kyoto 1,463,723
• Saitama 1,324,025
• Hiroshima 1,200,754
• Sendai 1,096,704
• Chiba 974,951
• Kitakyushu 939,029
• Sakai 826,161
• Hamamatsu 790,718
• Niigata 789,275

Up a level: all cities in Japan · Japan · government and power

Sources

• Statistics Bureau of Japan, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications: Statistical Observations of Municipalities 2026 (social and demographic statistics, city, ward, town and village data), read 28 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 2cb3d8c51aa1…)
• Statistics Bureau of Japan, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications: Statistical Observations of Prefectures 2026 (national figures, "All Japan" row), read 28 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 b69774a5f40c…)

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