National Institute of Statistics and Geography in the context of Censo Económico

This is a list of the top 100 cities in Mexico by fixed population, according to the 2020 Mexican National Census.

According to Mexico's National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), a locality is "any place settled with one or more dwellings, which may or may not be inhabited, and which is known by a name given by law or tradition". Urban localities are those with more than 2,500 residents, which can be designated as cities, villages or towns according to the laws of each state. The National Urban System, compiled by the National Population Council (CONAPO) in 2018, identifies 401 urban localities in Mexico with more than 15,000 residents as "cities". Most localities defined by INEGI are contained within a single municipality, although exceptions such as Naucalpan and Veracruz exist.

For the majority of cities in North America (including the Caribbean), the most recent official population census results, estimates or short-term projections date to 2020, with some dating 2022 at the latest. This list compiles figures for all North American cities with a population within city limits exceeding 500,000 that year. These figures do not reflect the population of the urban agglomeration or metropolitan area, which typically does not coincide with the administrative boundaries of the city. They refer to mid-2020 populations with the following exceptions:

1. Mexican cities, whose figures derive from the 2015 Intercensal Survey conducted by INEGI with a reference date of March 15, 2020.

The Censo de Población y Vivienda (Population and Housing Census) is the main national population census for Mexico. It is compiled by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), a decentralized agency of the Mexican Federal government, with the purpose of collating and reporting detailed demographic, socioeconomic and geographical data from across the nation, and is conducted every ten years.

As of 2021, there have been a total of 14 national population censuses, the most recent completed in 2020.

This is a list of the 50 largest cities in the Americas by population residing within city limits based on the most recent official census results, estimates, or short-term projections available for all of these cities, which refer to mid-2020 populations. These figures do not reflect the population of the urban agglomeration or metropolitan area which typically do not coincide with the administrative boundaries of the city. For a list of the latter, see List of metropolitan areas in the Americas by population. These figures refer to mid-2020 populations with the following exceptions:

1. Mexican cities, whose figures derive from the 2015 Intercensal Survey conducted by INEGI with a reference date of March 15, 2020;
2. Chilean cities, whose figures derive from the 2017 Census projection by Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas;
3. Venezuelan cities, whose figures originate from the 2015 estimate given by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística, with a reference date of 2016.

Culiacán Rosales is the capital and largest city of Sinaloa in northwestern Mexico. It is located within the Culiacán Municipality. The city was founded on 29 September 1531 by the Spanish conquistadors Lázaro de Cebreros and Nuño Beltrán de Guzmán originally under the name "Villa de San Miguel", in honor of its patron saint Michael the Archangel.

According to the 2020 INEGI census, Culiacán had an estimated population of 808,416, making it the 21st most populous city in Mexico. Its metropolitan area, with a population of 1,003,530, was the 17th most populous metropolitan area in Mexico.

Kanasín (In the Yucatec Maya language: “tense or strongly tightened”) is a city in the Mexican state of Yucatán and the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. It is located in the northwestern region of the state, forming part of the Mérida metropolitan area. According to the 2020 census carried out by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), it had a population of 139,753, making it the second largest Yucatecan city after Mérida, the 8th most populous in southeastern Mexico and the 101st most populous in the country.

In pre-Columbian times, the space that the city currently occupies was located in the ancient Mayan chiefdom of Chakan. Kanasín was established around the mid-16th century under the encomienda tributary system following the Spanish conquest of Yucatán. The name of the city derives precisely from a Mayan language term used to name a plant with reddish flowers that grows in the area. In 2007, it officially received city status. At the end of 2021, it hosted the First Ibero-American Meeting of Poetry. Today, it is a significant development pole as an industrial corridor for the state, together with the nearby city of Umán, which is also a suburb of Mérida.