Which states have the most of the top 50 largest US cities?
Executive summary
A clear regional skew runs through America’s largest municipalities: California, Texas and Florida house the lion’s share of the country’s biggest incorporated places, and that concentration carries into any “top cities” ranking; however, none of the supplied reports produce a state-by-state tally specifically for the top 50, so a precise count from these sources alone cannot be asserted [1] [2] [3]. The best available reporting shows California leads all states in the number of large cities, followed by Texas and Florida, and readers should consult primary city-rank lists (e.g., Wikipedia, Infoplease) to produce an exact top‑50 by‑state breakdown [1] [3] [4].
1. California’s dominance among large incorporated places
WorldPopulationReview’s updated compilation of large U.S. cities reports that, of the 365 U.S. cities with populations above 100,000, California contains the most — 77 cities — a fact that underscores why California typically places more entries in any “largest cities” list than other states [1]. That broad base of mid‑ and large‑sized municipalities explains why California shows up repeatedly in national top‑city tables compiled by outlets tracking Census and estimated population figures [1] [3].
2. Texas and Florida: the next tier of representation
The same aggregated reporting shows Texas and Florida as the next-most represented states among large cities: Texas with 48 cities over 100,000 and Florida with 33 in that category, suggesting they are the likeliest runners‑up when counting entries inside a top‑50 ranking [1]. ConsumerAffairs and other compilers likewise emphasize that Texas is “well‑represented” among the nation’s most populated cities, reinforcing patterns visible in multiple data compilations [2].
3. Why “top 50” needs its own count — and where to look
Although broad tallies across all cities above a population threshold are useful indicators, the user’s original question targets the specific set “top 50 largest U.S. cities,” and the provided sources do not publish a ready-made, sourced breakdown of that exact top‑50 by state within the snippets supplied here [3] [4]. For a definitive answer — the number of top‑50 entries per state — primary ranked lists such as Wikipedia’s “List of United States cities by population” and Infoplease’s “Top 50 Cities” are the appropriate reference points because they enumerate cities in rank order and enable straightforward state counts [3] [4].
4. How to reconcile ranking differences across sources
Compilers differ in methodology (Census estimates, municipal boundaries vs. metro areas, and inclusion of CDPs), which can shift which places appear in a top‑50 and therefore alter which states appear most often; Wikipedia and census‑based lists use incorporated place definitions, while other outlets might apply estimates or metro boundaries, so counts by state for a top‑50 set can vary depending on the source and year [3] [5]. That methodological friction means a single authoritative “top‑50‑by‑state” answer requires specifying the dataset and year used.
5. Practical takeaway and next steps for precise counts
Given the evidence at hand, California, then Texas, then Florida are the states most likely to hold the greatest number of entries among the nation’s 50 largest cities, but the supplied reporting does not include a direct, sourced tally limited to the top 50 itself, so an exact count cannot be declared here without consulting a ranked list and counting entries by state [1] [3] [4]. To produce a precise, auditable answer, extract the top‑50 ranked city list from a source like the U.S. Census‑based compilations on Wikipedia or Infoplease and tabulate states — that step is necessary because the available snippets provide broad patterns but not the narrowly scoped top‑50 breakdown required by the question [3] [4].