List of municipalities in Arizona
Map of the United States with Arizona highlighted Arizona is a state located in the Western United States . According to the 2020 United States Census , Arizona is the 14th most populous state with 7,151,502 inhabitants (as of the 2020 census)[ 1] 6th largest by land area spanning 113,623.1 square miles (294,282 km2 ).[ 2] incorporated cities and towns . Incorporated places in Arizona are those that have been granted home rule , possessing a local government in the form of a city or town council . Most of the population is concentrated within the Phoenix metropolitan area , with a 2020 census population of 4,845,832 ([ 3]
Phoenix is the capital and largest city by population in Arizona with 1,608,139 residents,[ 4] most populous city in the United States , and land area spanning 517.5 sq mi (1,340 km2 ) as of the 2020 census. The smallest municipality by population and land area is Winkelman with 296 residents in 0.75 sq mi (1.9 km2 ).[ 5] Tucson which incorporated in 1877 and the most recent was the town of Tusayan which incorporated in March 2010.[ 6]
Municipal incorporation
The Arizona Constitution has, since its ratification in 1912, allowed for the creation of municipal corporations in any community with a population of 3,500 or greater.[ 7] municipal charter cannot be created by special laws or by the legislature , but rather by the communities themselves as provided by general law.[ 8] national park or national monument .[ 9] [ 10]
State law allows for the incorporation of a community as either a city or a town; the only additional requirement to incorporate as a city is a minimum population of 3,000.[ 11] [ 12] [ 13] [ 14] [ 15]
Twenty Arizona municipalities were incorporated before 1912, when the state was admitted to the Union. As such, these cities and towns were incorporated by means other than those stipulated by current state law and the constitution. Phoenix, for example, was incorporated in 1881 by an act of the Territorial Legislature .[ 16]
List of cities and towns
Largest cities and towns in Arizona by population
Phoenix , Arizona's state capital and most populous municipality
Tucson , Arizona's second largest city by population
Mesa , a suburb of Phoenix and Arizona's third largest city by population
Chandler , a suburb of Phoenix and Arizona's fourth largest city by population
Gilbert , a suburb of Phoenix and Arizona's largest town and fifth largest municipality by population
Glendale , a suburb of Phoenix and Arizona's sixth largest city by population
Scottsdale , a suburb of Phoenix and Arizona's seventh largest city by population
Peoria , a suburb of Phoenix and Arizona's eighth largest city by population
Tempe , a suburb of Phoenix and Arizona's ninth largest city by population
Surprise , a suburb of Phoenix and Arizona's tenth largest city by population
† County seat
‡ State capital and county seat
Name
Type[ 17]
County
Population[ 5]
Population[ 18]
Change
Land area (2020)[ 19]
Population density (2020)
Incorporation year[ 20]
sq mi
km2
Apache Junction
City
Pinal , Maricopa
38,499
35,840
+7.4%
35.07
90.8
2 )
1978
Avondale
City
Maricopa
89,334
76,238
+17.2%
47.28
122.5
2 )
1946
Benson
City
Cochise
5,355
5,105
+4.9%
41.64
107.8
2 )
1924
Bisbee
City
Cochise
4,923
5,575
−11.7%
5.18
13.4
2 )
1902
Buckeye
City
Maricopa
91,502
50,876
+79.9%
392.98
1,017.8
2 )
1929
Bullhead City
City
Mohave
41,348
39,540
+4.6%
59.37
153.8
2 )
1984
Camp Verde
Town
Yavapai
12,147
10,873
+11.7%
42.35
109.7
2 )
1986
Carefree
Town
Maricopa
3,690
3,363
+9.7%
8.81
22.8
2 )
1984
Casa Grande
City
Pinal
53,658
48,571
+10.5%
110.87
287.2
2 )
1915
Cave Creek
Town
Maricopa
4,892
5,015
−2.5%
37.71
97.7
2 )
1986
Chandler
City
Maricopa
275,987
236,123
+16.9%
65.30
169.1
2 )
1920
Chino Valley
Town
Yavapai
13,020
10,817
+20.4%
62.42
161.7
2 )
1970
Clarkdale
Town
Yavapai
4,424
4,097
+8.0%
10.18
26.4
2 )
1957
Clifton †
Town
Greenlee
3,933
3,311
+18.8%
14.62
37.9
2 )
1909
Colorado City
Town
Mohave
2,478
4,821
−48.6%
9.20
23.8
2 )
1985
Coolidge
City
Pinal
13,218
11,825
+11.8%
76.27
197.5
2 )
1945
Cottonwood
City
Yavapai
12,029
11,265
+6.8%
16.60
43.0
2 )
1960
Dewey-Humboldt
Town
Yavapai
4,326
3,894
+11.1%
18.79
48.7
2 )
2004
Douglas
City
Cochise
16,534
17,378
−4.9%
9.98
25.8
2 )
1905
Duncan
Town
Greenlee
694
696
−0.3%
2.15
5.6
2 )
1938
Eagar
Town
Apache
4,395
4,885
−10.0%
11.58
30.0
2 )
1948
El Mirage
City
Maricopa
35,805
31,797
+12.6%
9.90
25.6
2 )
1951
Eloy
City
Pinal
15,635
16,631
−6.0%
113.57
294.1
2 )
1949
Flagstaff †
City
Coconino
76,831
65,870
+16.6%
66.03
171.0
2 )
1894
Florence †
Town
Pinal
26,785
25,536
+4.9%
62.62
162.2
2 )
1908
Fountain Hills
Town
Maricopa
23,820
22,489
+5.9%
20.28
52.5
2 )
1989
Fredonia
Town
Coconino
1,323
1,314
+0.7%
8.88
23.0
2 )
1956
Gila Bend
Town
Maricopa
1,892
1,922
−1.6%
64.37
166.7
2 )
1962
Gilbert
Town
Maricopa
267,918
208,453
+28.5%
68.57
177.6
2 )
1920
Glendale
City
Maricopa
248,325
226,721
+9.5%
61.60
159.5
2 )
1910
Globe †
City
Gila
7,249
7,532
−3.8%
18.26
47.3
2 )
1907
Goodyear
City
Maricopa
95,294
65,275
+46.0%
191.30
495.5
2 )
1946
Guadalupe
Town
Maricopa
5,322
5,523
−3.6%
0.80
2.1
2 )
1975
Hayden
Town
Gila , Pinal
512
662
−22.7%
1.27
3.3
2 )
1956
Holbrook †
City
Navajo
4,858
5,053
−3.9%
17.34
44.9
2 )
1917
Huachuca City
Town
Cochise
1,626
1,853
−12.3%
2.83
7.3
2 )
1958
Jerome
Town
Yavapai
464
444
+4.5%
0.79
2.0
2 )
1889
Kearny
Town
Pinal
1,741
1,950
−10.7%
2.70
7.0
2 )
1959
Kingman †
City
Mohave
32,689
28,068
+16.5%
37.55
97.3
2 )
1952
Lake Havasu City
City
Mohave
57,144
52,527
+8.8%
46.34
120.0
2 )
1978
Litchfield Park
City
Maricopa
6,847
5,476
+25.0%
3.28
8.5
2 )
1987
Mammoth
Town
Pinal
1,076
1,426
−24.5%
26.32
68.2
2 )
1958
Marana
Town
Pima , Pinal
51,908
34,961
+48.5%
121.10
313.6
2 )
1977
Maricopa
City
Pinal
58,125
43,482
+33.7%
42.46
110.0
2 )
2003
Mesa
City
Maricopa
504,258
439,041
+14.9%
138.70
359.2
2 )
1883
Miami
Town
Gila
1,541
1,837
−16.1%
0.89
2.3
2 )
1918
Nogales †
City
Santa Cruz
19,770
20,837
−5.1%
20.82
53.9
2 )
1893
Oro Valley
Town
Pima
47,070
41,011
+14.8%
34.87
90.3
2 )
1974
Page
City
Coconino
7,440
7,247
+2.7%
38.18
98.9
2 )
1975
Paradise Valley
Town
Maricopa
12,658
12,820
−1.3%
15.38
39.8
2 )
1961
Parker †
Town
La Paz
3,417
3,083
+10.8%
21.98
56.9
2 )
1948
Patagonia
Town
Santa Cruz
804
913
−11.9%
1.29
3.3
2 )
1948
Payson
Town
Gila
16,351
15,301
+6.9%
19.35
50.1
2 )
1973
Peoria
City
Maricopa , Yavapai
190,985
154,065
+24.0%
176.08
456.0
2 )
1954
Phoenix ‡
City
Maricopa
1,608,139
1,445,632
+11.2%
518.00
1,341.6
2 )
1881
Pima
Town
Graham
2,847
2,387
+19.3%
7.30
18.9
2 )
1916
Pinetop-Lakeside
Town
Navajo
4,030
4,282
−5.9%
11.15
28.9
2 )
1984
Prescott †
City
Yavapai
45,827
39,843
+15.0%
44.97
116.5
2 )
1883
Prescott Valley
Town
Yavapai
46,785
38,822
+20.5%
40.47
104.8
2 )
1978
Quartzsite
Town
La Paz
2,413
3,677
−34.4%
36.30
94.0
2 )
1989
Queen Creek
Town
Maricopa , Pinal
59,519
26,361
+125.8%
40.32
104.4
2 )
1989
Safford †
City
Graham
10,129
9,566
+5.9%
9.27
24.0
2 )
1901
Sahuarita
Town
Pima
34,134
25,259
+35.1%
31.69
82.1
2 )
1994
San Luis
City
Yuma
35,257
25,505
+38.2%
34.03
88.1
2 )
1979
Scottsdale
City
Maricopa
241,361
217,385
+11.0%
184.00
476.6
2 )
1951
Sedona
City
Yavapai , Coconino
9,684
10,031
−3.5%
18.26
47.3
2 )
1988
Show Low
City
Navajo
11,732
10,660
+10.1%
65.50
169.6
2 )
1953
Sierra Vista
City
Cochise
45,308
43,888
+3.2%
152.25
394.3
2 )
1956
Snowflake
Town
Navajo
6,104
5,590
+9.2%
33.74
87.4
2 )
1948
Somerton
City
Yuma
14,197
14,287
−0.6%
7.27
18.8
2 )
1918
South Tucson
City
Pima
4,613
5,652
−18.4%
1.03
2.7
2 )
1940
Springerville
Town
Apache
1,717
1,961
−12.4%
11.50
29.8
2 )
1948
St. Johns †
City
Apache
3,417
3,480
−1.8%
25.91
67.1
2 )
1946
Star Valley
Town
Gila
2,484
1,970
+26.1%
36.14
93.6
2 )
2005
Superior
Town
Pinal
2,407
2,837
−15.2%
1.96
5.1
2 )
1976
Surprise
City
Maricopa
143,148
117,517
+21.8%
110.30
285.7
2 )
1960
Taylor
Town
Navajo
3,995
4,112
−2.8%
32.66
84.6
2 )
1966
Tempe
City
Maricopa
180,587
161,719
+11.7%
39.94
103.4
2 )
1894
Thatcher
Town
Graham
5,231
4,865
+7.5%
6.60
17.1
2 )
1899
Tolleson
City
Maricopa
7,216
6,545
+10.3%
5.73
14.8
2 )
1929
Tombstone
City
Cochise
1,308
1,380
−5.2%
9.25
24.0
2 )
1881
Tucson †
City
Pima
542,629
520,116
+4.3%
240.99
624.2
2 )
1877
Tusayan [ a] Town
Coconino
603
558
+8.1%
16.83
43.6[ b]
2 )
2010
Wellton
Town
Yuma
2,375
2,882
−17.6%
28.88
74.8
2 )
1970
Wickenburg
Town
Maricopa , Yavapai
7,474
6,363
+17.5%
25.86
67.0
2 )
1909
Willcox
City
Cochise
3,213
3,757
−14.5%
6.15
15.9
2 )
1915
Williams
City
Coconino
3,202
3,023
+5.9%
43.83
113.5
2 )
1901
Winkelman
Town
Gila , Pinal
296
353
−16.1%
0.77
2.0
2 )
1949
Winslow
City
Navajo
9,005
9,655
−6.7%
12.99
33.6
2 )
1900
Youngtown
Town
Maricopa
7,056
6,156
+14.6%
1.49
3.9
2 )
1960
Yuma †
City
Yuma
95,548
93,064
+2.7%
120.67
312.5
2 )
1914
Total municipalities
—
—
5,728,859
5,022,368
+14.1%
4,548.05 11,779.4
2 )—
State of Arizona
—
—
7,151,502
6,392,017
+11.9% [ 1] 113,623.1 294,282
2 )—
See also
Notes
^ Because Tusayan was incorporated in 2010, its population was not included in the 2010 Census. The 2010 Census count for the now defunct Tusayan CDP was 558.
^ Because the Tusayan was incorporated after the 2010 Census, its area is not reported by the Census Bureau. The 2010 area of the Census-designated place corresponding to Tusayan was 8.91 sq mi (23.1 km2 ). At its incorporation, Tusayan included an area of only 0.2 sq mi (0.52 km2 ), much smaller than its CDP counterpart.
References
^ a b "Arizona's Population More Than 7 Million in 2020, Up 11.9% Since 2010" . Census.gov . United States Census Bureau.^ "Arizona Profile" . 2020 United States Census United States Census Bureau . Archived from the original on May 18, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2020 .^ "Arizona's Population More Than 7 Million in 2020, Up 11.9% Since 2010" . 2020 United States Census United States Census Bureau .^ "Phoenix city, Arizona" . 2020 United States Census United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 15, 2022 .^ a b
"Explore Census Data" . U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved August 25, 2021 .
^ Wagner, Dennis (April 12, 2010). "Competing interests divide new Arizona town" . The Arizona Republic . Retrieved April 12, 2010 . ^ "Article 13, Section 2" . Arizona Constitution . Retrieved January 1, 2020 .^ "Article 13, Section 1" . Arizona Constitution . Retrieved January 1, 2020 .^ "Arizona Revised Statutes §9-101. Incorporation; definition" . Arizona State Legislature. Archived from the original on July 24, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2008 .^ "Arizona Revised Statutes §9-101.01. Incorporation, urbanized area" . Arizona State Legislature. Archived from the original on July 29, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2008 .^ "Arizona Revised Statutes §9-281. Adoption procedure; board of freeholders; election" . Arizona State Legislature. Archived from the original on July 19, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2008 .^ "Arizona Revised Statutes §9-276. Additional powers of cities" . Arizona State Legislature. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2008 .^ "Arizona Revised Statutes §9-121. Consolidation of towns" . Arizona State Legislature. Archived from the original on July 29, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2009 .^ "Arizona Revised Statutes §9-122. Unification of a city and a town" . Arizona State Legislature. Archived from the original on August 2, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2009 .^ "Arizona Revised Statutes §9-271. Procedure for change; city officers" . Arizona State Legislature. Archived from the original on August 2, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2009 .^ "Out of the Ashes: The History of the City of Phoenix" . City of Phoenix. Archived from the original on July 6, 2008. Retrieved June 19, 2008 .^ "About the League: Member Cities and Towns" . Arizona League of Cities and Towns. Archived from the original on February 14, 2012. Retrieved August 9, 2009 .^ "GCT-PH1 – Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 – State — Place and (in selected states) County Subdivision" . 2010 United States Census United States Census Bureau . Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved June 17, 2015 .^ "Places" . 2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files . United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 27, 2021 .^ "Community Profiles" . Arizona Department of Commerce. Retrieved May 22, 2015 .
