Cities and municipios of Mexico

Hermosillo

Hermosillo, capital of Sonora, Mexico, founded 1700 as Santísima Trinidad del Pitic by Juan Bautista de Escalante; renamed 1828, definitive state capital 1879; 936,263 municipal residents (2020).

Irapuato, city and municipality in Guanajuato, Mexico; 'Strawberry Capital of the World' and Bajío auto-parts and agro-industrial hub; 592,953 inhabitants (2020), founded traditionally 15 February 1547.

Ixtapaluca

Ixtapaluca, State of Mexico municipality in the Mexico City metropolitan area; 542,211 inhabitants (2020), ninth of 125 state municipalities; site of the Acozac (Ixtapaluca Viejo) Postclassic archaeological zone on Cerro de Moctezuma.

Jiutepec

Jiutepec (Xiutpec, Nahuatl for 'hill of precious stones') is a municipality in Morelos, Mexico, southeast of Cuernavaca; 215,357 inhabitants (2020), Tlahuica origins, conquered by Cortés in 1521, home of the CIVAC industrial park.

La Paz, Baja California Sur

La Paz, Baja California Sur: state capital and port on the Bay of La Paz, Gulf of California. Named by Vizcaíno (1595/1596), continuously settled since 1811, capital since 1830; municipality of 292,241 people (2020) facing water scarcity.

León, Guanajuato

León, also known as León de los Aldama, is a city in Guanajuato, central Mexico, founded in 1576. It produces seven of every ten pairs of shoes made in Mexico.

Los Mochis

Los Mochis, city in Ahome municipality, northern Sinaloa, Mexico; founded 1903 around Benjamin Francis Johnston's sugar mill after Albert K. Owen's utopian colony; 298,009 residents (2020); Chepe railway and Topolobampo port.

Matamoros, Tamaulipas

Matamoros (Heroica Matamoros), Tamaulipas: border city across from Brownsville, Texas; 541,979 residents in 2020; founded 1774, made a port and villa in 1826; maquiladora trade economy and new Puerto del Norte port operating since August 2025.

Mazatlán

Mazatlán, the "Perla del Pacífico," is a Pacific-coast city and municipality in southern Sinaloa, Mexico: a beach resort, cruise and commercial port, and seafood exporter with 501,441 residents (2020) and over 2.57 million tourists in early 2026.

Mérida, Yucatán

Mérida, Yucatán: capital of Yucatán, Mexico, founded 1542 over the Maya city T'Hó (Ichcaansihó); ~995,000 residents in 2020, fast-growing metro, sole-source karst aquifer, large colonial historic center.

Mexicali

Mexicali is the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California, a border city founded in 1903 across from Calexico and known for its Chinese food.

Mexico City

Mexico City (Ciudad de México, CDMX), capital of Mexico on the former Lake Texcoco bed at 2,240 m; founded as Tenochtitlan in 1325, rebuilt after the 1521 conquest; about 21.3 million in the metro area, sinking up to 25 cm per year.

Monclova

Monclova is a city in central Coahuila, Mexico, founded in 1689 as Santiago de la Monclova and once the first colonial capital of Texas. Known as Mexico's steel capital, it was built around AHMSA, whose 2022 closure and 2024 bankruptcy triggered an economic crisis and auction.

Monterrey

Monterrey, capital of Nuevo León, Mexico, and core of a ~6.1-million-person metropolitan area; 1,142,994 municipal residents (2020), industrial and trade hub, 2026 World Cup host city with expanding Metro lines 4 and 6.

Morelia

Morelia, formerly Valladolid, is the capital of Michoacán, Mexico, founded May 18, 1541 by Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza; renamed 1828 for José María Morelos; UNESCO World Heritage historic centre since 1991.

Naucalpan de Juárez

Naucalpan de Juárez, a municipality in the State of Mexico bordering Mexico City; Nahuatl name meaning "place of the four houses"; 834,434 inhabitants (2020); industrial hub with the Torres de Satélite and Mexicable Line 3.

Nicolás Romero

Nicolás Romero is a municipality in the State of Mexico, Mexico, with seat Ciudad Nicolás Romero; 430,601 inhabitants in 2020, textile industry since the mid-19th century, renamed Villa Nicolás Romero in 1898.

Nogales, Sonora

Nogales, Sonora (Heroica Nogales), Mexican border city paired with Nogales, Arizona as Ambos Nogales; founded with the Sonora Railroad in 1880–1882, municipality 1884; about 260,000 residents, maquiladora-dominated economy, 55% of GDP from manufacturing.

Oaxaca City

Oaxaca City (Oaxaca de Juárez), capital of Oaxaca state, Mexico; founded 1529 as Antequera on a colonial grid plan; UNESCO World Heritage with Monte Albán since 1987; 270,955 residents (2020); major tourism economy.

Pachuca de Soto

Pachuca de Soto, capital municipality of Hidalgo, Mexico; seat city Pachuca. Historic silver-mining center in the Comarca Minera, 314,331 inhabitants (2020), 154.01 km², Reloj Monumental landmark.

Playa del Carmen

Playa del Carmen is a city on Mexico's Caribbean coast in Quintana Roo, at the center of the Riviera Maya and among Latin America's fastest-growing cities.

Poza Rica de Hidalgo

Poza Rica de Hidalgo, a city and municipality in northern Veracruz, Mexico; former "Oil Capital of Mexico" (70% of national crude, 1946–1956); municipality created 1951; refinery closed 1991; hit by the 2025 Cazones River flood.

Puebla (city)

Puebla (Heroica Puebla de Zaragoza), capital of Puebla state, Mexico; founded 1531, UNESCO World Heritage historic center since 1987; fourth-largest metro (~3.25M), automotive hub, record 3.19M tourists in 2025.

Puerto Escondido

Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, Mexico: Pacific coast city and port in San Pedro Mixtepec, famed for the Zicatela "Mexican Pipeline" surf break, its 2026 World Surfing Reserve designation, PXM airport, and fast-growing tourism economy.

Puerto Peñasco

Puerto Peñasco (Rocky Point) is a city and resort municipality in northwest Sonora, Mexico, on the upper Gulf of California near the Arizona border; a former shrimp-fishing port now driven by tourism, seafood exports, and a large solar plant.

Rosarito

Rosarito (Playas de Rosarito) is a Pacific coast resort city and municipality in Baja California, Mexico, south of Tijuana; a municipality since 1995, population 126,890 (2020), known for border proximity, tourism, and a planned desalination plant.

Saltillo, Coahuila

Saltillo, capital of Coahuila de Zaragoza in northeastern Mexico, founded 1577 by Alberto del Canto; automotive manufacturing hub (GM, Nemak), 879,958 residents in 2020, major vehicle-parts exporter, and 2026 World Cup subhost city.

San Cristóbal de las Casas

San Cristóbal de las Casas is a city in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico, founded in 1528 and known for its colonial architecture and Maya heritage.

San Luis Potosí (city)

San Luis Potosí, capital of the Mexican state of the same name, founded 1592 as a mining real on the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro; UNESCO World Heritage, Learning City, and Creative City of Literature; metro of about one million with a deep-aquifer water supply.