Cook Islands's cities at a glance
Cook Islands has 0 with more than 100,000 (city-proper figures). The largest is Avarua with 13,373 people. The three largest cities together hold about 99.2% of the country's 13,000 people.
The capital, Avarua, is also the largest city.
Country-level figures — live population, births and deaths, growth, density and history — are on the Cook Islands population page; provinces, terrain, rivers and society maps are in the Cook Islands atlas.
Cook Islands cities by population
| # | City | Region | Population | Share of Cook Islands |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AvaruaCapital | Rarotonga | 13,373 | 99.2% |
Cities with 300,000 or more people link to their own page. The list keeps every city of 100,000+ and at least the 30 largest places of the country.
Frequently asked questions
What is the largest city in Cook Islands?
Avarua, with about 13,373 inhabitants (city proper).
What is the capital of Cook Islands?
Avarua — population 13,373, the largest city in the country.
How many cities in Cook Islands have over one million people?
None — the largest, Avarua, has 13,373 people.
Are these metropolitan-area populations?
No. They are city-proper figures (the administrative city) from GeoNames, based on the latest census or official estimate. Metropolitan areas, which include suburbs and satellite towns, are larger — often several times larger for the biggest cities.
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French PolynesiaCite or link to this page
Glostats. (2026). Largest Cities in Cook Islands 2026: Population Ranking. Retrieved October 20, 2026, from https://glostats.com/cities/cook-islands/<a href="https://glostats.com/cities/cook-islands/">Largest Cities in Cook Islands 2026: Population Ranking</a> — GlostatsFigures on this page may be quoted, charted or republished as long as the page is credited with a link. Terms · Download the data as CSV · Embed a live counter.
City populations are GeoNames figures (CC BY 4.0): the latest official census or estimate for the city proper — the municipality, not the wider metropolitan area — so they can differ from "metro area" numbers you see elsewhere. Country populations are live Glostats estimates from the UN World Population Prospects. Page generated 2026-10-20. More about our data.