The Atlas

Municipalities in Ilocos Region

A municipality is a local government made up of barangays, led by a mayor, a vice mayor and the Sangguniang Bayan, the municipal council.^[1] Only Congress can create one, by law, approved in a plebiscite. The law asks for an income of ₱2.5 million a year, 25,000 people and 50 km² of land.^[1]

A municipality that grows can become a component city by law, once it earns ₱100 million a year and has 100 km² of land or 150,000 people.^{[1, 2]}

Open Ilocos Region

Municipalities in Ilocos Region, at a glance

Municipalities: 116^[3]
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: 4,303,461^[4]
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: 11,899.51 km²^[5]; Each municipality's official area, added up.
Most people: Malasiqui^[4]; Pangasinan; 144,344 people
Fewest people: Carasi^[4]; Ilocos Norte; 1,775 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: Vintar^[5]; Ilocos Norte; 539.20 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: Currimao^[5]; Ilocos Norte; 11,672 people per km²
Fastest growing, 10,000 people or moreGrowth 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: Nueva Era^[4]; Ilocos Norte; 2.57% 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: 19 municipalities^[4]; Of those with 10,000 people or more, the steepest fall: Paoay, −0.77% a year.

Island group: Luzon

Region: Ilocos Region

Province: All

Sort: Most people

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Each row is a municipality, 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.

116 municipalities, 51 to 100 shown, most people first.

Municipalities in Ilocos Region, most people
Rank	Name	People, 2024	People per km²	Land area	Growth, 2020–2024
51	VintarIlocos Norte	35,051	65	539.20 km²	1.21% a year
52	LaoacPangasinan	34,550	880	39.25 km²	0.30% a year
53	Santa MariaPangasinan	34,452	685	50.31 km²	0.16% a year
54	San QuintinPangasinan	34,322	339	101.18 km²	0.24% a year
55	BadocIlocos Norte	32,832	407	80.75 km²	0.22% a year
56	BacarraIlocos Norte	32,734	538	60.86 km²	−0.55% a year
57	MagsingalIlocos Sur	31,970	366	87.34 km²	0.50% a year
58	TubaoLa Union	31,868	643	49.58 km²	0.08% a year
59	DasolPangasinan	31,842	196	162.30 km²	0.37% a year
60	BalungaoPangasinan	30,678	429	71.48 km²	0.53% a year
61	PasuquinIlocos Norte	30,521	153	199.08 km²	0.67% a year
62	Santa MariaIlocos Sur	30,076	476	63.23 km²	0.06% a year
63	Santo DomingoIlocos Sur	29,372	554	53.01 km²	0.27% a year
64	AgnoPangasinan	29,270	173	169.16 km²	−0.55% a year
65	LabradorPangasinan	26,995	276	97.82 km²	0.16% a year
66	InfantaPangasinan	26,837	94	284.15 km²	0.54% a year
67	NatividadPangasinan	26,721	206	129.80 km²	0.87% a year
68	San JuanIlocos Sur	26,709	356	75.05 km²	0.03% a year
69	MabiniPangasinan	26,589	110	241.05 km²	0.12% a year
70	SarratIlocos Norte	26,294	448	58.66 km²	1.04% a year
71	SolsonaIlocos Norte	26,249	157	166.95 km²	1.32% a year
72	Santa LuciaIlocos Sur	26,200	580	45.15 km²	0.22% a year
73	SinaitIlocos Sur	26,059	341	76.43 km²	0.06% a year
74	PagudpudIlocos Norte	25,565	145	176.79 km²	0.44% a year
75	PaoayIlocos Norte	24,204	366	66.08 km²	−0.77% a year
76	CabaLa Union	23,432	503	46.62 km²	0.32% a year
77	BurgosPangasinan	23,240	127	182.49 km²	−0.52% a year
78	PiddigIlocos Norte	22,781	163	139.40 km²	0.32% a year
79	CervantesIlocos Sur	20,065	52	389.14 km²	0.75% a year
80	SantiagoIlocos Sur	19,771	404	48.96 km²	0.37% a year
81	CaoayanIlocos Sur	19,715	1,062	18.56 km²	0.17% a year
82	BannaIlocos Norte	19,363	199	97.27 km²	0.08% a year
83	PugoLa Union	19,107	116	164.09 km²	−0.29% a year
84	San GabrielLa Union	18,579	159	117.16 km²	−0.46% a year
85	MarcosIlocos Norte	18,105	2,586	7.00 km²	0.13% a year
86	PiniliIlocos Norte	17,705	269	65.77 km²	0.11% a year
87	SudipenLa Union	16,888	177	95.46 km²	−0.42% a year
88	BanguiIlocos Norte	15,227	134	113.41 km²	0.33% a year
89	SantaIlocos Sur	15,164	239	63.51 km²	0.27% a year
90	Santo TomasPangasinan	14,894	1,190	12.52 km²	0.03% a year
91	SantolLa Union	14,877	117	127.37 km²	1.18% a year
92	BagulinLa Union	14,434	132	109.73 km²	0.01% a year
93	Santa CatalinaIlocos Sur	14,319	1,530	9.36 km²	−0.29% a year
94	Nueva EraIlocos Norte	13,305	26	512.22 km²	2.57% a year
95	San VicenteIlocos Sur	13,074	987	13.25 km²	−0.08% a year
96	BurgosIlocos Sur	13,026	265	49.11 km²	0.43% a year
97	CurrimaoIlocos Norte	12,256	11,672	1.05 km²	0.08% a year
98	SalcedoIlocos Sur	11,196	110	101.55 km²	0.19% a year
99	SuyoIlocos Sur	11,051	79	139.14 km²	0.63% a year
100	BurgosIlocos Norte	10,962	85	129.07 km²	0.45% 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.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
4.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
5.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.