The Atlas

Cities in Zamboanga del Norte

A city is a local government of more built-up barangays, led by a mayor, a vice mayor and the Sangguniang Panlungsod, the city council.^[1] Only Congress can make a city, by law, approved in a plebiscite. Since 2001 the law asks for an income of ₱100 million a year and either 100 km² of land or 150,000 people.^{[1, 2]}

A city of 200,000 people and ₱50 million a year can be declared highly urbanized by the President, after a plebiscite.^[1] Highly urbanized cities, and independent component cities whose voters do not vote for the province's officials, govern themselves apart from their province; a component city is part of it.^[3]

Open Zamboanga del Norte

Cities in Zamboanga del Norte, at a glance

CitiesCity classA highly urbanized city or an independent component city governs itself apart from the province around it: its voters do not elect the governor. A component city is part of its province.More in the glossary: 2^[4]; 2 component
People, 2024CensusA count of every person in the country, all on one day. The 2024 census counted people as they were on 1 July 2024.More in the glossary: 224,227^[5]
Land areaLand areaThe land inside the place's official boundary. A square kilometre is a square 1 km on each side, about the size of 140 football fields.More in the glossary: 357.87 km²^[6]; Each city's official area, added up.
Most people: Dipolog City^[5]; Zamboanga del Norte; 136,528 people
Fewest people: Dapitan City^[5]; Zamboanga del Norte; 87,699 people
Largest by landLand areaThe land inside the place's official boundary. A square kilometre is a square 1 km on each side, about the size of 140 football fields.More in the glossary: Dapitan City^[6]; Zamboanga del Norte; 227.76 km²
Most crowdedPopulation densityHow crowded a place is on average: its people divided by its land area. 1,000 people per square kilometre is 10 people per hectare, a square of 100 by 100 metres.More in the glossary: Dipolog City^[6]; Zamboanga del Norte; 1,049 people per km²
Fastest growingGrowth a yearHow fast the number of people changed each year between two censuses. 1% a year means about 1 more person for every 100 people, each year.More in the glossary: Dapitan City^[5]; Zamboanga del Norte; 0.70% a year, 2020 to 2024
Fewer people than in 2020Growth a yearHow fast the number of people changed each year between two censuses. 1% a year means about 1 more person for every 100 people, each year.More in the glossary: 1 city^[5]; Dipolog City, −0.28% a year.

Island group: Mindanao

Region: Zamboanga Peninsula

Province: Zamboanga del Norte

Sort: Most people

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Each row is a city, with its 2024 census figures. Choose a column heading or a sort button to order the list, and choose it again to turn the order round. Narrow it with the menus.

2 cities, most people first.

Cities in Zamboanga del Norte, most people
Rank	Name	People, 2024	People per km²	Land area	Growth, 2020–2024
1	Dipolog CityComponent city · Zamboanga del Norte	136,528	1,049	130.11 km²	−0.28% a year
2	Dapitan CityComponent city · Zamboanga del Norte	87,699	385	227.76 km²	0.70% a year

How it fits

Cities and municipalities are the local governments of the towns, each led by a mayor, a vice mayor and a council, and each made up of barangays. A municipality becomes a city by a law of Congress, once it earns enough and has enough people or land.

Sources

The list shows each place's own figures: people from the PSA's 2024 census, growth from its 2020 census, land areas from the Land Management Bureau's 2019 masterlist. Every figure's source is on its place's page; how Scene works out the rest.

1.Congress of the Philippines. Republic Act No. 7160: the Local Government Code of 1991. Published October 10, 1991. Read by Scene October 2, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
2.Congress of the Philippines. Republic Act No. 9009: amending Section 450 of the Local Government Code, raising the income a municipality needs to become a component city. Published February 24, 2001. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
3.1986 Constitutional Commission. The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines. Published February 2, 1987. Read by Scene October 2, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
4.Philippine Statistics Authority. Philippine Standard Geographic Code (PSGC), 2nd Quarter 2026: Publication Datafile. Published June 30, 2026. Read by Scene September 24, 2026. CC BY (PSA Terms of Use). Open the source
5.Philippine Statistics Authority. Population and Annual Population Growth Rate of the Philippines and its Regions, Provinces, and Highly Urbanized Cities Based on the 2010, 2015, 2020 and 2024 Population Census (OpenSTAT table 0211A6DAPG0). Published August 7, 2026. Read by Scene October 2, 2026. CC BY (PSA Terms of Use). Open the source
6.Philippine Statistics Authority, from the Land Management Bureau (DENR). Population, Land Area, Population Density, and Percent Change in Population Density by Region, Province/Highly Urbanized City, and City/Municipality: 2015, 2020, and 2024 (OpenSTAT table 0221A6DLPD0). Published August 7, 2026. Read by Scene October 2, 2026. CC BY (PSA Terms of Use). Open the source

Scene adds what the sources do not print themselves: growth rates, shares, barangay areas and densities, coordinates, neighbours and distances, each computed from the figures and borders above. How each is made.

See something wrong on this page? Write to hello@scene.ph with the page address. We check every report against the source.