Cities in Finland
Last updated 25 September 2026
All 9 cities in Finland with more than 100,000 residents: the official population, a short profile and the crime rate recorded by the police, set against the rate for Finland.
Municipalities (kunnat) with at least 100,000 residents on 31 December 2025 (Statistics Finland, final population structure statistics).
How to read the figures
- Population is the latest official figure from Statistics Finland.
- The crime rate is: offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025, from Statistics Finland, statistics on offences and coercive measures. National rate: Finland 101.1.
- Statistics Finland counts every offence and infraction recorded by the police, customs and border guard in the municipality where it occurred – including traffic offences and minor infractions, which is why the Finnish rates are much higher than other countries’. Regional centres, ports and airports record offences by and against non-residents.
- Compare cities within Finland only: every country defines and records crime differently.
- The figure is not your personal risk: offences are counted where they happen, so city centres with many commuters and visitors record higher rates.
All 9 cities
| City | Region | Residents | Crime rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Helsinki | Uusimaa | 694,392 | 137.1 |
| Espoo | Uusimaa | 325,716 | 82.3 |
| Tampere | Pirkanmaa | 263,337 | 110.4 |
| Vantaa | Uusimaa | 252,956 | 145.4 |
| Oulu | North Ostrobothnia (Pohjois-Pohjanmaa) | 217,469 | 90.6 |
| Turku | Southwest Finland (Varsinais-Suomi) | 209,633 | 122.5 |
| Jyväskylä | Central Finland (Keski-Suomi) | 149,895 | 101.3 |
| Kuopio | North Savo (Pohjois-Savo) | 126,572 | 85.2 |
| Lahti | Päijät-Häme | 121,832 | 112.8 |
The cities, from largest
Helsinki (Helsinki / Helsingfors)
Uusimaa · 694,392 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's capital and largest city, with 430,886 jobs in 2023 (nearly nine in ten in services) and the University of Helsinki. The Port of Helsinki is Finland's largest cargo port by value of goods; Helsinki Airport is around 30 minutes away by train.
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Helsinki 137.1, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Helsinki Facts and Figures 2026 (pdf) – City of Helsinki, Urban Research and Statistics, Helsinki Facts and Figures – kaupunkitieto.hel.fi (City of Helsinki), To and from Helsinki Airport by car or using public transportation – Finavia
Espoo (Espoo / Esbo)
Uusimaa · 325,716 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's second-largest city, part of the Helsinki metropolitan area, with five urban centres. The city calls itself a hub of science, business and research: Aalto University and the VTT research centre are in Otaniemi, and Keilaniemi houses headquarters of international companies.
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Espoo 82.3, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Information about Espoo – City of Espoo
Tampere
Pirkanmaa · 263,337 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's third-largest city, 176 km from Helsinki by road, with Tampere University (seven faculties, three campuses) and a university of applied sciences. Textile and engineering works grew up around the Tammerkoski rapids from the 19th century; a tramway has linked centre and suburbs since 2021.
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Tampere 110.4, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Information on Tampere – City of Tampere, Tampere – a small town in a large city – City of Tampere, About Tampere University – Tampere University
Vantaa (Vantaa / Vanda)
Uusimaa · 252,956 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's fourth-largest city and the site of Helsinki Airport, the country's largest airport, about 30 minutes by train from central Helsinki. The city calls itself an airport city in the middle of the metropolitan area, with the Aviapolis business area and 127,410 jobs (2023).
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Vantaa 145.4, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Vantaa in brief – City of Vantaa, Helsinki Airport – Finavia, To and from Helsinki Airport by car or using public transportation – Finavia
Oulu
North Ostrobothnia (Pohjois-Pohjanmaa) · 217,469 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's fifth-largest city and the largest in northern Finland, on the Gulf of Bothnia coast. The University of Oulu (founded 1958, about 14,800 students, 4,300 employees) is based here, and the city's business unit BusinessOulu names ICT, especially wireless technologies, as a key sector.
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Oulu 90.6, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Information and Statistics – City of Oulu, University of Oulu – about the university, Oulu's ICT sector services – BusinessOulu (City of Oulu)
Turku (Turku / Åbo)
Southwest Finland (Varsinais-Suomi) · 209,633 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's oldest city and former capital, officially bilingual with about 5% Swedish speakers, and home to the University of Turku (25,000 students and staff). Its port has ferry services to Stockholm and is part of the EU's TEN-T network; trains connect Turku with Helsinki.
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Turku 122.5, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Information for a Newcomer in Turku – City of Turku, University – University of Turku, Port of Turku
Jyväskylä
Central Finland (Keski-Suomi) · 149,895 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's seventh-largest city and, in its own words, the commercial centre of the Central Finland region. The University of Jyväskylä, where Finnish-language teacher education began in 1863, has over 15,200 students and 2,850 staff on three campus areas.
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Jyväskylä 101.3, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Jyväskylä information – City of Jyväskylä, About us – University of Jyväskylä
Kuopio
North Savo (Pohjois-Savo) · 126,572 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's eighth-largest city, with a health-sector cluster: the city counts over 5,000 health-sector jobs and more than 1,000 health-related companies in the area. The University of Eastern Finland has one of its two campuses here, and the national Emergency Services College is also in Kuopio.
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Kuopio 85.2, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Center of Wellbeing and Health Expertise – City of Kuopio, Working culture and regional competence – City of Kuopio, University – University of Eastern Finland
Lahti
Päijät-Häme · 121,832 residents on 31 December 2025.
Finland's ninth-largest city, which describes itself as the centre of a region of 200,000 people, and European Green Capital 2021. LUT University's Lahti campus, shared with LAB University of Applied Sciences, has over 8,000 students; the City of Lahti employs around 3,700 people.
Offences and infractions recorded by the authorities per 1,000 residents, 2025: Lahti 112.8, Finland 101.1.
Sources – population: Statistics Finland · Crime: Statistics Finland · About the city: Lahti info – City of Lahti, Living in Lahti – City of Lahti, Lahti campus – LUT University
Sources and method
Population: Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus), StatFin table 11ra: Key figures on population by Area, Information and Year – 'Population 31 Dec', 2025 (final population structure statistics, updated 29 May 2026). Crime: Statistics Finland, Statistics on offences and coercive measures (rpk), StatFin table 13h4: Offences recorded by year of reporting, figures relative to the population in the area of the offence, 1980–2025 (annual 2025 data published 27 May 2026). Where a figure was not published for a city, we say so rather than estimate it. Found an error? Write to editor@relocateineurope.com.