NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Metropolitan Statistical Area

In the United States, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has produced a formal definition of metropolitan areas, which are organized around county boundaries. These are referred to as "Metropolitan Statistical Areas" (MSAs).

See also

The following is a list of the 25 most populated metropolitan statistical areas in the United States, according to the 2000 Census:

Rank	Metropolitan Area	States/Territories	Population	Other names*
1	New York--Northern New Jersey--Long Island	NY--NJ--CT	18,323,002	Tri-state Area, New York area, Greater New York
2	Los Angeles--Long Beach--Santa Ana	CA	12,365,627	The Southland, Southern California (The latter also refers to the entire southern portion of the state)
3	Chicago--Naperville--Joliet	IL--IN--WI	9,098,316	Chicagoland, Greater Chicago, Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana (the latter refers to the eastern part extended until South Bend, Indiana)
4	Philadelphia--Camden--Wilmington	PA--NJ--DE--MD	5,687,147	The Delaware Valley, Tri-state Area
5	Dallas--Fort Worth--Arlington	TX	5,161,634	The Metroplex, DFW
6	Miami--Fort Lauderdale--Miami Beach	FL	5,007,564	South Florida metropolitan area
7	Washington--Arlington--Alexandria	DC--VA--MD--WV	4,796,183	Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area (now defunct)
8	Houston--Baytown--Sugar Land	TX	4,715,407	Houston Metropolitan Area
9	Detroit--Warren--Livonia	MI	4,452,557	Metro Detroit, Southeast Michigan, Southeastern Lower Michigan**
10	Boston--Cambridge--Quincy	MA--NH	4,391,344	Greater Boston
11	Atlanta--Sandy Springs--Marietta	GA	4,247,981	Atlanta Metropolitan Area
12	San Francisco--Oakland--Fremont	CA	4,123,740	The Bay Area***
13	Riverside--San Bernardino--Ontario	CA	3,254,821	Inland Empire
14	Phoenix--Mesa--Scottsdale	AZ	3,251,876	The Valley of the Sun
15	Seattle--Tacoma--Bellevue	WA	3,043,878	Greater Puget Sound
16	Minneapolis--St. Paul--Bloomington	MN--WI	2,968,806	The Twin Cities
17	San Diego--Carlsbad--San Marcos	CA	2,813,833
18	St. Louis	MO--IL	2,698,687	Greater St. Louis
19	San Juan--Caguas--Guaynabo	PR	2,579,248
20	Baltimore--Towson	MD	2,552,994
21	Pittsburgh	PA	2,431,087
22	Tampa--St. Petersburg--Clearwater	FL	2,395,997	Tampa Bay Area
23	Denver--Aurora	CO	2,196,028
24	Cleveland--Elyria--Mentor	OH	2,148,143	Greater Cleveland, Northeast Ohio
25	Cincinnati--Middletown	OH--KY--IN	2,009,632

* Not necessarily equivalent to the Census definition of the metropolitan area.
** This is the metropolitan area of Detroit within US borders. A larger metropolitan area containing the Windsor, Ontario area is used internationally.
*** The Bay Area is a much larger area than the OMB's rather limited MSA, corresponding more closely to the San Jose - San Francisco - Oakland Combined Statistical Area

For a complete list, see List of United States metropolitan statistical areas by population.

External links

U.S. Census 2000 Metropolitan Area Rankings (http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/phc-t3.html)
U.S. Census Metropolitan Area Estimates (1990s) (http://eire.census.gov/popest/archives/1990.php)
U.S. Census Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Area Definitions (http://www.census.gov/population/www/estimates/metrodef.html)

Results from FactBites:

Metropolitan Statistical Area (207 words)
	Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) reflect the efforts of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to map some popular images (such as New York as a metropolis, or “Greater Philadelphia”;) using urban census data.
	Adjacent counties may be included in the MSA if they meet certain criteria of integration into the metropolitan area.
	The sprawling Chicago urbanized area is populous enough to characterize a Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA).

Compressed Mortality: N C H S - Urban-Rural Classification Scheme Methodology (2428 words)
	One difference between the 2000 standards for metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas and previous standards is that the 2000 standards use urbanized areas to identify metropolitan areas, whereas previous standards relied primarily on incorporated cities, and, less commonly, urbanized areas to identify metropolitan areas.
	Counties in a metropolitan statistical area of 250,000 to 999,999 population
	Counties in a metropolitan statistical area of 50,000 to 249,999 population

More results at FactBites »

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