Quick answerCairo is the capital and largest city of Egypt, with 9,801,536 people inside the city limits in 2023. The wider metropolitan area had about 22.2 million people in 2023. It is best known for the Egyptian Museum, the Cairo Citadel and the Islamic Cairo. Its official language is Arabic, and its currency is the Egyptian pound.
Cairo is the capital and largest city of Egypt, with about 9.8 million people inside the city limits and about 22.2 million in the wider Greater Cairo area (2023). It stands on the east bank of the Nile and is home to the Egyptian Museum, the Citadel and Islamic Cairo.
Key facts
| Country | Egypt |
|---|---|
| Population (city) | 9,801,536 (2023) |
| Population (metro) | 22,200,000 (2023) · Greater Cairo |
| Elevation | 23 m above sea level |
| Time zone | Africa/Cairo |
| Language | Arabic |
| Currency | Egyptian pound (EGP, £) |
| Coordinates | 30.0444° N, 31.2358° E |
Overview
Cairo is the capital of Egypt and the centre of the largest metropolitan area in Africa and the Middle East. The city proper covers 606 square kilometres and had 9,801,536 residents in 2023, while the wider Greater Cairo area held about 22.2 million people. Cairo sits on the east bank of the Nile, about 23 metres above sea level, at the head of the Delta, and it is the political, economic and cultural heart of the Arab world.
Cairo was founded in 969, when the Fatimid dynasty built a new walled city beside the older settlement of Fustat. The Citadel, built by Saladin in the 12th century, and the mosques of Islamic Cairo, a UNESCO World Heritage site, still dominate the old city, and Al-Azhar, founded in 970, is one of the oldest universities in the world. The Egyptian Museum on Tahrir Square holds the treasures of Tutankhamun, and the Grand Egyptian Museum, which opened in 2025 beside the pyramids of Giza, is the largest archaeological museum in the world.
Today most of Cairo's daily life plays out in its markets, mosques and Nile-side promenades, from Khan el-Khalili bazaar to the Corniche. A new administrative capital is being built in the desert east of the city to take over government offices.
What Cairo is known for
- Egyptian Museum
- Cairo Citadel
- Islamic Cairo
- Khan el-Khalili
- Nile Corniche
Landmarks
- Egyptian Museum
- Cairo Citadel
- Al-Azhar Mosque
- Khan el-Khalili
- Grand Egyptian Museum
- Sultan Hassan Mosque
Frequently asked questions
What is the population of Cairo?
About 9.8 million people live inside the Cairo city limits (9,801,536 in 2023, according to CAPMAS via citypopulation.de). The wider Greater Cairo area had about 22.2 million people. That gap is why Cairo can look like a big city on a map and feel like a megacity on the ground: the built-up area stretches far beyond the city limits.
What is Cairo famous for?
Cairo is famous for the Egyptian Museum, the Citadel and the mosques and bazaars of Islamic Cairo, a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is also known for the nearby pyramids of Giza, just across the river, for its Nile-side life, its food and its markets, above all Khan el-Khalili.
Where is Cairo located?
Cairo is in northern Egypt, on the east bank of the Nile near the head of the Delta, about 160 kilometres from the Mediterranean coast. It is the capital of Egypt and of the Cairo Governorate. Its coordinates are 30.04° N, 31.24° E, and its time zone is Eastern European Time.
Quick quiz
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Keep exploring
- Egypt — the country Cairo is in
- Alexandria — another city in Egypt
- Giza — another city in Egypt
- Luxor — another city in Egypt
- Cleopatra — Egyptian politics figure
- All cities in Egypt
- All countries — the full list
Sources & last updated
Last updated: . Figures are shown with their year; where sources disagree, the value is left out rather than estimated.