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The Atlas

Regions in Luzon

A region groups provinces and cities so that their officials and the national government's offices can plan the region's growth together.[1] A region is not a local government: those are the provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays.[1] Of the 18, only Bangsamoro governs itself, with a parliament of its own.[2]

The national government sets the regions. The newest, the Negros Island Region, was established by law on June 11, 2024, from Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental and Siquijor.[3]

Metro ManilaCordillera Administrative RegionIlocos RegionCagayan ValleyCentral LuzonCALABARZONMIMAROPABicol RegionWestern VisayasNegros Island RegionCentral VisayasEastern VisayasZamboanga PeninsulaNorthern MindanaoDavao RegionSOCCSKSARGENCaragaBangsamoro (BARMM)
Each region in a colour of its own. Pick one to open it.

Regions in Luzon, at a glance

Regions
8[4]
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
64,162,977[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
150,742.84 km²[6]
Each region's official area, added up.
Most people
CALABARZON[5]
16,933,234 people
Fewest people
Cordillera Administrative Region[5]
1,808,985 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
Cagayan Valley[6]
30,986.61 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
Metro Manila[6]
22,561 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
Central Luzon[5]
1.08% 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 region[5]
Bicol Region, −0.07% a year.
Island group: Luzon
Sort: Most people

Each row is a region, 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.

8 regions, most people first.

Regions in Luzon, most people
RankNamePeople, 2024People per km²Land areaGrowth, 2020–2024
1CALABARZONLuzon16,933,2341,09515,470.23 km²1.07% a year
2Metro ManilaLuzon14,001,75122,561620.61 km²0.91% a year
3Central LuzonLuzon12,989,07457422,648.03 km²1.08% a year
4Bicol RegionLuzon6,064,42633718,007.22 km²−0.07% a year
5Ilocos RegionLuzon5,342,45341612,830.62 km²0.19% a year
6Cagayan ValleyLuzon3,777,60812230,986.61 km²0.59% a year
7MIMAROPALuzon3,245,44611229,063.47 km²0.13% a year
8Cordillera Administrative RegionLuzon1,808,9858621,116.05 km²0.15% a year

How each region was created

The law or order that made each region, and what changed it after, from the law itself.

  • CALABARZON

    Created by

    CALABARZON was created as Region IV-A by Executive Order No. 103, signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on 17 May 2002, which divided Region IV into Region IV-A and Region IV-B.[7]

  • Metro Manila

    Created by

    Metropolitan Manila was declared the National Capital Region of the Philippines by Presidential Decree No. 1396 on 2 June 1978. It had first been put together as a single public corporation under Presidential Decree No. 824 of 7 November 1975.[8, 9]

  • Central Luzon

    Created by

    Region III, called the Central Luzon Region, was one of the eleven uniform regions of the Integrated Reorganization Plan, which Presidential Decree No. 1 adopted on 24 September 1972. Presidential Decree No. 224 of 22 June 1973 defined its provinces and cities.[10, 11, 12]

  • Bicol Region

    Created by

    The Bicol Region (Region V) was one of the administrative regions set up when Presidential Decree No. 1 of 24 September 1972 adopted the Integrated Reorganization Plan, which divided the country into regions.[10]

  • Ilocos Region

    Created by

    Region I, called the Ilocos Region, was one of the eleven uniform regions of the Integrated Reorganization Plan, which Presidential Decree No. 1 adopted on 24 September 1972. Presidential Decree No. 224 of 22 June 1973 restated its provinces and cities.[10, 11, 12]

  • Cagayan Valley

    Created by

    Region II, called the Cagayan Valley Region, was one of the eleven uniform regions of the Integrated Reorganization Plan, which Presidential Decree No. 1 adopted on 24 September 1972.[10, 11, 13]

  • MIMAROPA

    Created by

    Executive Order No. 103 of 17 May 2002 split Region IV in two, Region IV-A and Region IV-B, and gave Region IV-B the name MIMAROPA, covering Marinduque, Mindoro Occidental, Mindoro Oriental, Palawan and Romblon.[7]

  • Cordillera Administrative Region

    Created by

    The Cordillera Administrative Region was created by Executive Order No. 220, signed by President Corazon Aquino on 15 July 1987.[14]

How it fits

A region groups provinces and cities so that national agencies can run their offices and keep their statistics region by region. Most regions have no government of their own; Bangsamoro is the one that governs itself, under its own law.

  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. 1.1986 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
  2. 2.Congress of the Philippines. Republic Act No. 11054: the Organic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (the Bangsamoro Organic Law). Published July 27, 2018. Read by Scene October 2, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
  3. 3.Congress of the Philippines. Republic Act No. 12000: An Act Establishing the Negros Island Region. Published June 11, 2024. Read by Scene October 2, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). 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
  6. 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
  7. 7.Malacañang / LawPhil Project. Executive Order No. 103, Dividing Region IV into Region IV-A and Region IV-B. Published May 17, 2002. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
  8. 8.Malacañang / LawPhil Project. Presidential Decree No. 1396, Creating the Department of Human Settlements. Published June 2, 1978. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
  9. 9.Malacañang / LawPhil Project. Presidential Decree No. 824, Creating the Metropolitan Manila and the Metropolitan Manila Commission. Published November 7, 1975. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
  10. 10.Malacañang / LawPhil Project. Presidential Decree No. 1, Reorganizing the Executive Branch of the National Government. Published September 24, 1972. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
  11. 11.Malacañang / LawPhil Project. Presidential Decree No. 268, Splitting Region 4 into Region 4 and Region 4-A for the Bureau of Posts. Published August 4, 1973. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
  12. 12.Malacañang / LawPhil Project. Presidential Decree No. 224, Amending Certain Parts of the Integrated Organization Plan. Published June 22, 1973. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
  13. 13.Malacañang / LawPhil Project. Presidential Decree No. 640, Revising the Staffing Pattern of the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Published January 21, 1975. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). Open the source
  14. 14.Malacañang / LawPhil Project. Executive Order No. 220, Creating a Cordillera Administrative Region. Published July 15, 1987. Read by Scene October 3, 2026. Philippine government work, no copyright (Republic Act No. 8293, Section 176.1). 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.