This is a list of the largest

metropolitan areas A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

by population. Estimates are from the following sources: * the "Functional Urban Areas" (FUAs) of the Study on Urban Functions of the

European Spatial Planning Observation Network The European Observation Network for Territorial Development and Cohesion, ESPON for short, is a European funded programme under the objective of "European Territorial Cooperation" of the Cohesion Policy of the European Union. It is co-funded by the ...

(ESPON, 2007) * the "Larger Urban Zone" (LUZs) of Urban Audit project (2004), supported by the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

. Not all cities were included in this survey. * calculations by Francisco Ruiz from data of the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (2008 estimates). As well as "metropolitan area" data, Ruiz has produced larger

conurbation A conurbation is a region comprising a number of metropolises, cities, large towns, and other urban areas which through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban or industrially developed area. In most cas ...

data for some areas. The "conurbation" figure is used where available, and is cited as such; otherwise, the "metropolitan area" figure is used. The figures differ between the reports due to the difference in survey dates and differences in methodology. For example, ESPON considers

Oviedo Oviedo (; ast, Uviéu ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains the city. Oviedo is located a ...

– Gijón–

Avilés Avilés (; ) is a town in Asturias, Spain. Avilés is, along with Oviedo and Gijón, one of the main cities in the Principality of Asturias. The town occupies the flattest land in the municipality, partially in a land that belonged to the sea, s ...

as a single FUA, while Urban Audit has separate LUZs for Oviedo and Gijón. Similarly,

Vilanova i la Geltrú Vilanova i la Geltrú () is the capital city of Garraf '' comarca'', in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Historically a fishing port, the city has a growing population of approximately 66,000, and is situated 40 km south-west of ...

is included in

Barcelona metropolitan area The Barcelona urban area is an urban area in Catalonia (Spain) centered on the city of Barcelona and located less than 100 km south of the border with France. With a population of over 5 million, it is the most populous urban area on the Me ...

by ESPON, but as a separate conurbation by Ruiz. Torrelodones

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria-Panoramic view over the city

See also