The Atlas

Municipalities in Visayas

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]}

LuzonVisayasMindanao

Municipalities in Visayas, at a glance

Municipalities: 369^[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: 13,505,228^[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: 45,891.79 km²^[5]; Each municipality's official area, added up.
Most people: Liloan^[4]; Cebu; 158,387 people
Fewest people: Maslog^[4]; Eastern Samar; 5,438 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: Quinapondan^[5]; Eastern Samar; 786.92 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: Cordova^[5]; Cebu; 7,627 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: Silago^[4]; Southern Leyte; 2.73% 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: 38 municipalities^[4]; Of those with 10,000 people or more, the steepest fall: Llorente, −2.99% a year.

Island group: Visayas

Region: 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.

369 municipalities, 151 to 200 shown, most people first.

Municipalities in Visayas, most people
Rank	Name	People, 2024	People per km²	Land area	Growth, 2020–2024
151	ParanasSamar	35,281	66	536.73 km²	2.08% a year
152	BalasanIloilo	35,193	598	58.90 km²	0.09% a year
153	GuimbalIloilo	35,129	797	44.09 km²	0.07% a year
154	AloguinsanCebu	34,990	569	61.48 km²	0.36% a year
155	PalapagNorthern Samar	34,954	232	150.50 km²	0.64% a year
156	DueñasIloilo	34,941	367	95.13 km²	0.24% a year
157	Santa FeCebu	34,834	4,976	7.00 km²	0.25% a year
158	GuindulmanBohol	34,660	409	84.67 km²	0.39% a year
159	CatmonCebu	34,608	316	109.64 km²	0.61% a year
160	DaoCapiz	34,555	398	86.81 km²	0.50% a year
161	Tobias FornierAntique	34,411	301	114.19 km²	0.42% a year
162	CapoocanLeyte	34,388	238	144.79 km²	0.47% a year
163	PambujanNorthern Samar	34,174	200	170.62 km²	−0.93% a year
164	BatanAklan	33,932	385	88.04 km²	0.32% a year
165	TabangoLeyte	33,888	893	37.93 km²	0.01% a year
166	BanateIloilo	33,790	461	73.26 km²	0.30% a year
167	GetafeBohol	33,485	349	95.83 km²	0.05% a year
168	CalapeBohol	33,022	391	84.55 km²	−0.04% a year
169	JimalaludNegros Oriental	32,996	229	144.04 km²	0.55% a year
170	IvisanCapiz	32,853	554	59.30 km²	1.19% a year
171	LemeryIloilo	32,836	239	137.61 km²	1.07% a year
172	CatubigNorthern Samar	32,688	162	201.45 km²	0.38% a year
173	SigmaCapiz	32,628	314	103.97 km²	0.70% a year
174	MatalomLeyte	32,604	274	119.16 km²	0.01% a year
175	IgbarasIloilo	32,442	259	125.29 km²	0.18% a year
176	President RoxasCapiz	32,436	417	77.81 km²	0.88% a year
177	MeridaLeyte	32,373	401	80.76 km²	0.60% a year
178	BontocSouthern Leyte	32,082	1,844	17.40 km²	1.79% a year
179	CalubianLeyte	31,990	746	42.86 km²	0.26% a year
180	PulupandanNegros Occidental	31,942	1,728	18.49 km²	1.42% a year
181	BuenavistaBohol	31,095	297	104.66 km²	1.10% a year
182	San MiguelIloilo	31,093	953	32.62 km²	0.77% a year
183	DauinNegros Oriental	30,921	273	113.10 km²	0.71% a year
184	DumalagCapiz	30,872	278	111.25 km²	0.61% a year
185	San IsidroLeyte	30,792	770	39.98 km²	0.05% a year
186	MakatoAklan	30,650	463	66.26 km²	0.74% a year
187	AnilaoIloilo	30,612	302	101.44 km²	0.07% a year
188	ZamboanguitaNegros Oriental	30,412	229	132.90 km²	0.68% a year
189	HinunanganSouthern Leyte	30,384	201	151.51 km²	1.00% a year
190	BaleteAklan	30,310	265	114.59 km²	0.17% a year
191	San LorenzoGuimaras	30,266	288	105.15 km²	0.66% a year
192	SiquijorSiquijor	30,215	346	87.43 km²	1.06% a year
193	CandijayBohol	30,142	287	105.11 km²	0.02% a year
194	BasayNegros Oriental	30,018	160	187.38 km²	1.23% a year
195	San RoqueNorthern Samar	29,993	198	151.49 km²	0.09% a year
196	LavezaresNorthern Samar	29,801	279	106.76 km²	0.33% a year
197	TabuelanCebu	29,662	319	92.89 km²	0.62% a year
198	TibiaoAntique	29,608	203	146.17 km²	0.75% a year
199	BabatngonLeyte	29,587	215	137.50 km²	0.63% a year
200	OslobCebu	29,378	267	109.92 km²	0.09% 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.