List of capitals in China

The scope of this list is limited to capital cities of first-level administrative divisions such as provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities, and special administrative regions, also including sub-provincial cities which are governed by a province but administered independently in many ways from a province.

Provincial-level capitals

Note: The People's Republic of China claims Taiwan as one of its provinces, which it does not control.

Jurisdiction	Capital	Chinese	Capital since	Land area	Population	Urban area population	Symbol	Seat	Map
Anhui	Hefei	合肥市	1853	11,434	9,369,881	5,118,199	庐	Shushan
Beijing	Beijing	北京市	1927	16,801	21,893,095	21,893,095	京	Tongzhou
Chongqing	Chongqing	重庆市	1927	82,401	32,054,159	22,251,500	渝	Yuzhong
Fujian	Fuzhou	福州市	1278	12,177	8,291,268	4,094,491	榕	Gulou
Gansu	Lanzhou	兰州市	1667	13,300	4,359,446	3,072,100	兰	Chengguan
Guangdong	Guangzhou	广州市	1369	7,434	18,676,605	16,492,590	穗	Yuexiu
Guangxi	Nanning	南宁市	1912	22,189	8,741,584	5,977,185	邕	Qingxiu
Guizhou	Guiyang	贵阳市	1413	8,034	5,987,018	4,506,134	筑	Guanshanhu
Hainan	Haikou	海口市	1988	2,237	2,046,189	2,046,189	海	Xiuying
Hebei	Shijiazhuang	石家庄市	1968	15,722	11,235,086	4,717,198	石	Chang'an
Heilongjiang	Harbin	哈尔滨市	1949	53,100	10,009,854	7,152,381	哈	Songbei
Henan	Zhengzhou	郑州市	1954	7,507	12,600,574	6,650,532	郑	Zhongyuan
Hong Kong	Hong Kong	香港特别行政区	1997	1,104	7,481,800	7,481,800	港	Central & Western
Hubei	Wuhan	武汉市	1927	8,494	12,326,500	12,326,500	汉	Jiang'an
Hunan	Changsha	长沙市	1664	11,819	10,047,914	6,242,453	星	Yuelu
Inner Mongolia	Hohhot	呼和浩特市	1952	17,224	3,446,100	2,681,758	呼	Xincheng
Jiangsu	Nanjing	南京市	1952	6,598	9,314,685	9,314,685	宁	Xuanwu
Jiangxi	Nanchang	南昌市	1277	7,372	6,255,007	3,929,660	洪	Honggutan
Jilin	Changchun	长春市	1954	20,532	9,066,906	5,691,024	春	Nanguan
Liaoning	Shenyang	沈阳市	1662	12,942	9,070,093	7,885,142	沈	Hunnan
Macau	Macau	澳门特别行政区	1999	29	683,100	683,100	澳	São Lourenço
Ningxia	Yinchuan	银川市	1928	4,467	2,859,074	1,901,793	银	Jinfeng
Qinghai	Xining	西宁市	1928	7,372	2,467,965	1,954,795	湟	Chengzhong
Shaanxi	Xi'an	西安市	1286	9,983	12,952,907	11,904,805	镐	Weiyang
Shandong	Jinan	济南市	1377	8,177	9,202,432	8,352,574	济	Lixia
Shanghai	Shanghai	上海市	1927	6,340	24,870,895	24,870,895	沪	Huangpu
Shanxi	Taiyuan	太原市	1369	6,959	5,305,061	4,529,141	并	Xinghualing
Sichuan	Chengdu	成都市	1286	12,132	20,937,757	15,419,445	蓉	Wuhou
Tianjin	Tianjin	天津市	1927	11,760	13,866,009	10,932,000	津	Hexi
Tibet	Lhasa	拉萨市	1642	29,274	867,891	648,044	拉	Chengguan
Xinjiang	Ürümqi	乌鲁木齐市	1884	14,577	3,112,559	3,029,372	乌	Tianshan
Yunnan	Kunming	昆明市	1275	21,473	8,460,088	5,604,310	昆	Chenggong
Zhejiang	Hangzhou	杭州市	1367	16,847	11,936,010	10,711,238	杭	Jianggan

Sub-provincial cities that are not themselves provincial capitals

Sub-provincial cities have a status that is below that of the municipalities, which are independent and equivalent to provinces, but above other, regular prefecture-level cities, which are completely ruled by their respective provinces. However, these sub-provincial cities are marked the same as other provincial capitals on almost all maps.
In total, there are five sub-provincial cities that are not themselves provincial capitals. These five cities have been designated as "Cities with Independent Planning Status".

List of the Cities with Independent Planning Status

With the exception of Fuzhou, the provincial capital of Fujian Province, the provincial capitals of the other four provinces listed above – Guangzhou, Shenyang, Jinan, and Hangzhou – are themselves sub-provincial cities. Before 1997, when Chongqing was a sub-provincial city of Sichuan Province, provincial capital Chengdu was also a sub-provincial city.