The Atlas

Municipalities in Cebu

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 Cebu

Municipalities in Cebu, at a glance

Municipalities: 44^[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: 2,399,469^[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: 3,694.22 km²^[5]; Each municipality's official area, added up.
Most people: Liloan^[4]; Cebu; 158,387 people
Fewest people: Tudela^[4]; Cebu; 11,638 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: Tuburan^[5]; Cebu; 246.16 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: San Fernando^[4]; Cebu; 1.26% 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: 4 municipalities^[4]; Of those with 10,000 people or more, the steepest fall: Boljoon, −0.51% a year.

Island group: Visayas

Region: Central Visayas

Province: Cebu

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.

44 municipalities, most people first.

Municipalities in Cebu, most people
Rank	Name	People, 2024	People per km²	Land area	Growth, 2020–2024
1	LiloanCebu	158,387	3,736	42.39 km²	0.80% a year
2	MinglanillaCebu	155,934	3,028	51.50 km²	0.77% a year
3	ConsolacionCebu	153,931	3,947	39.00 km²	0.94% a year
4	BalambanCebu	98,170	454	216.45 km²	0.76% a year
5	DaanbantayanCebu	95,080	1,019	93.27 km²	0.40% a year
6	BantayanCebu	87,394	1,080	80.92 km²	0.32% a year
7	BariliCebu	82,427	680	121.21 km²	0.50% a year
8	ArgaoCebu	78,111	396	197.02 km²	−0.02% a year
9	PinamungajanCebu	76,568	699	109.55 km²	0.46% a year
10	San FernandoCebu	76,110	878	86.66 km²	1.26% a year
11	DalagueteCebu	75,937	465	163.22 km²	0.43% a year
12	CordovaCebu	72,915	7,627	9.56 km²	0.78% a year
13	TuburanCebu	68,307	277	246.16 km²	0.05% a year
14	San RemigioCebu	67,850	810	83.77 km²	0.76% a year
15	MedellinCebu	62,163	819	75.94 km²	1.01% a year
16	San FranciscoCebu	61,092	644	94.82 km²	0.74% a year
17	CarmenCebu	60,230	699	86.17 km²	0.95% a year
18	DumanjugCebu	59,954	702	85.35 km²	0.87% a year
19	CompostelaCebu	58,178	1,202	48.39 km²	0.97% a year
20	AsturiasCebu	54,777	359	152.55 km²	−0.27% a year
21	SibongaCebu	54,610	566	96.47 km²	0.53% a year
22	BadianCebu	44,626	418	106.74 km²	0.48% a year
23	MadridejosCebu	42,828	1,753	24.43 km²	0.45% a year
24	TabogonCebu	42,066	469	89.76 km²	0.36% a year
25	SogodCebu	40,746	365	111.78 km²	0.78% a year
26	BorbonCebu	40,097	459	87.37 km²	1.18% a year
27	MoalboalCebu	37,993	536	70.85 km²	0.68% a year
28	AloguinsanCebu	34,990	569	61.48 km²	0.36% a year
29	Santa FeCebu	34,834	4,976	7.00 km²	0.25% a year
30	CatmonCebu	34,608	316	109.64 km²	0.61% a year
31	TabuelanCebu	29,662	319	92.89 km²	0.62% a year
32	OslobCebu	29,378	267	109.92 km²	0.09% a year
33	PoroCebu	26,908	401	67.09 km²	0.61% a year
34	AlegriaCebu	26,520	321	82.54 km²	0.83% a year
35	RondaCebu	21,179	442	47.87 km²	0.20% a year
36	SamboanCebu	20,736	396	52.40 km²	0.42% a year
37	MalabuyocCebu	20,378	308	66.06 km²	0.73% a year
38	AlcoyCebu	19,207	325	59.16 km²	0.03% a year
39	SantanderCebu	18,669	643	29.05 km²	0.18% a year
40	AlcantaraCebu	17,490	677	25.84 km²	0.81% a year
41	GinatilanCebu	17,184	353	48.74 km²	0.39% a year
42	BoljoonCebu	17,153	178	96.60 km²	−0.51% a year
43	PilarCebu	12,454	373	33.37 km²	−0.10% a year
44	TudelaCebu	11,638	350	33.27 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.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.