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The Atlas

Provinces in Mindanao

A province is a local government made up of municipalities and component cities, led by a governor, a vice governor and the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, the provincial board.[1] A highly urbanized city lies inside a province but governs itself apart from it, so the PSA counts its people apart from the province's.[2, 3]

Only Congress can create a province, by law, and only when the voters of the places affected approve it in a plebiscite.[1, 2] The law asks for an income of at least ₱20 million a year and either 2,000 km² of land or 250,000 people.[1]

Metro ManilaCordillera Administrative RegionIlocos RegionCagayan ValleyCentral LuzonCALABARZONMIMAROPABicol RegionWestern VisayasNegros Island RegionCentral VisayasEastern VisayasZamboanga PeninsulaNorthern MindanaoDavao RegionSOCCSKSARGENCaragaBangsamoro (BARMM)
LuzonVisayasMindanao

Provinces in Mindanao, at a glance

Provinces
28[4]
The Special Geographic Area of Bangsamoro, listed with them, is counted apart.
Most people
Bukidnon[5]
Northern Mindanao
1,601,902 people
Fewest people
Camiguin[5]
Northern Mindanao
94,892 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
Agusan del Sur[3]
Caraga
9,876.82 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
Sulu[3]
Zamboanga Peninsula
518 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
Basilan[5]
Bangsamoro (BARMM)
5.93% 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
3 provinces[5]
The steepest fall: Dinagat Islands, −1.45% a year.
Island group: Mindanao
Region: All
Sort: Most people

Each row is a province, 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.

28 provinces and the Special Geographic Area, most people first.

Provinces in Mindanao, most people
RankNamePeople, 2024People per km²Land areaGrowth, 2020–2024
1BukidnonProvince · Northern Mindanao1,601,9021719,360.57 km²0.93% a year
2Lanao del SurProvince · Bangsamoro (BARMM)1,368,1372505,483.08 km²3.29% a year
3CotabatoProvince · SOCCSKSARGEN1,286,1422096,155.62 km²0.21% a year
4SuluProvince · Zamboanga Peninsula1,146,0975182,211.57 km²3.32% a year
5Davao del NorteProvince · Davao Region1,143,9313113,676.99 km²0.40% a year
6Maguindanao del NorteProvince · Bangsamoro (BARMM)1,124,8113762,990.84 km²4.31% a year
7Zamboanga del NorteProvince · Zamboanga Peninsula1,067,0671536,993.50 km²0.45% a year
8Zamboanga del SurProvince · Zamboanga Peninsula1,045,1262444,290.46 km²−0.13% a year
9South CotabatoProvince · SOCCSKSARGEN1,010,0092494,052.29 km²0.84% a year
10Misamis OrientalProvince · Northern Mindanao988,0652963,336.91 km²0.77% a year
11Sultan KudaratProvince · SOCCSKSARGEN863,6511525,689.08 km²0.27% a year
12Maguindanao del SurProvince · Bangsamoro (BARMM)813,2432832,876.24 km²2.84% a year
13Davao de OroProvince · Davao Region783,7751495,257.86 km²0.50% a year
14Lanao del NorteProvince · Northern Mindanao761,7253062,492.03 km²1.26% a year
15Agusan del SurProvince · Caraga740,531759,876.82 km²0.04% a year
16Davao del SurProvince · Davao Region705,1293172,221.11 km²0.86% a year
17Zamboanga SibugayProvince · Zamboanga Peninsula661,4982183,032.59 km²−0.30% a year
18Surigao del SurProvince · Caraga648,8581145,692.86 km²0.25% a year
19Misamis OccidentalProvince · Northern Mindanao621,9933082,021.01 km²0.18% a year
20Davao OrientalProvince · Davao Region590,0421035,726.46 km²0.56% a year
21SaranganiProvince · SOCCSKSARGEN580,9151503,862.92 km²0.93% a year
22Surigao del NorteProvince · Caraga565,6442752,053.75 km²1.36% a year
23BasilanProvince · Bangsamoro (BARMM)541,9474371,239.38 km²5.93% a year
24Tawi-TawiProvince · Bangsamoro (BARMM)482,6453611,335.72 km²2.23% a year
25Agusan del NorteProvince · Caraga404,1001512,678.59 km²1.01% a year
26Davao OccidentalProvince · Davao Region317,5981552,051.08 km²0.03% a year
27Special Geographic AreaSpecial Geographic Area · Bangsamoro (BARMM)214,703388552.82 km²−0.08% a year
28Dinagat IslandsProvince · Caraga120,533146826.48 km²−1.45% a year
29CamiguinProvince · Northern Mindanao94,892437217.23 km²0.53% a year

How it fits

A province is a local government led by a governor and made up of cities and municipalities. A highly urbanized city, or an independent component city, lies within a province but governs itself apart from it.

  1. Island groups3Luzon, the Visayas, Mindanao: a grouping, not a government
  2. Regions18Big areas that group provinces
  3. Provinces82Each led by a governor
  4. Cities and municipalities1,642Each led by a mayor
  5. Barangays42,010The smallest unit, led by a punong barangay (kapitan)

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. 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. 2.1986 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
  3. 3.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
  4. 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. 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

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.