City Asia
Chongqing
Chongqing is a huge city in China. It sits where two rivers meet, and its tall buildings glow with lights at night.
Chongqing is a city on the Yangtze River in China, where the Jialing River joins it. At the 2020 census, 9,580,819 people lived in its city area, and more than 32 million in the whole Chongqing Municipality around it. Bridges cross its rivers, and monorail trains run above its streets.
Chongqing, a river port on the Yangtze at its confluence with the Jialing, became a treaty port in 1891 and is now the center of a province-level municipality of about 82,000 km² (32,054,159 people at the 2020 census). Its urban population was 9,580,819 at that census, ninth among China's cities.
Photo: Jay Huang, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Discover Chongqing
Chongqing is a big city in China. Two rivers meet here: the Yangtze and the Jialing.
Millions of people live in Chongqing.
Chongqing is a city on the Yangtze River in China. The Jialing River, a tributary of the Yangtze, flows into it here.
At the 2020 census, 9,580,819 people lived in the city itself, the ninth-largest urban population in China. The city is the center of Chongqing Municipality, an area of about 82,000 square kilometers with towns and countryside too, where 32,054,159 people lived.
China National Bureau of Statistics (via City Population): urban population of Chongqing 9,580,819 at the census of 1 November 2020, rank 9 among China's cities (after Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Tianjin, Wuhan and Dongguan). Chongqing Municipality, a province-level city of about 82,000 km² with urban districts and rural counties: 30,512,763 (2000), 28,846,170 (2010) and 32,054,159 (2020).
World Encyclopedia (Oxford, via Encyclopedia.com): a city on the River Yangtze; a transport and shipping center.
- Country
- China
- People in the city (urban population, census 2020)
- 9,580,819
- Chongqing Municipality (census 2020)
- 32,054,159 people on about 82,000 km²
- Rivers
- the Yangtze and the Jialing, a tributary of the Yangtze
Bridges and lights by the river
Look at the lights! A white bridge crosses the river, and old-style buildings glow gold by the water.
The tallest tower has big shining words on it.
This photo shows Chongqing at night on 29 December 2019: the Qiansimen Bridge, Hongya Cave (Hongyadong) and the Chongqing World Financial Centre, the photo's description says. The bridge's white tower and orange-lit deck cross the river on the left.
Along the riverbank, the many-roofed buildings of Hongyadong glow gold, and a lit boat floats on the water. Behind them rise skyscrapers. On the tallest, the World Financial Center, 338.9 meters tall according to Wikidata, lights spell a greeting in Chinese: 'Hello Chongqing, hello world'.
Commons: 'Chongqing Nightscape', Flickr photo by Jay Huang, 29 December 2019, CC BY 2.0, reviewed by FlickreviewR 2; description: Qiansimen Bridge, Hongya Cave, and Chongqing World Financial Centre (a later version is a slightly cropped copy).
In the picture: the Qiansimen Bridge, hung by cables from a white tower, and an orange-lit truss deck; Hongyadong's tiered buildings with curved roofs, lit gold, along the bank; an illuminated riverboat; office and apartment towers with company signs; the World Financial Center's facade lit with 重庆你好 世界你好 ('Hello Chongqing, hello world') and hearts. Wikidata: Chongqing World Financial Center (Q1076144), a skyscraper, height 338.9 m; Hongyadong (Q32171478), a building complex.
- Photo
- Qiansimen Bridge, Hongya Cave and Chongqing World Financial Centre at night, 29 December 2019
- Chongqing World Financial Center
- a skyscraper 338.9 m tall (Wikidata)
- Hongyadong
- a building complex in Chongqing (Wikidata)
A river port for centuries
Chongqing has been a river town for a very long time. Boats have carried goods up and down its rivers.
Chongqing, once written Chungking in English, has been part of a unified China since the 14th century, the Oxford World Encyclopedia says. In 1891 it became a treaty port, a port opened to foreign trade under an agreement. From 1937 to 1945, during a war, it served as China's capital.
Today it is a center of transport and shipping on the Yangtze.
World Encyclopedia (Oxford, via Encyclopedia.com), 'Chungking (Chongqing, Ch'ung-ch'ing)': city on the River Yangtze; from the 14th century part of a unified China; a treaty port from 1891; wartime capital of China (1937–45); a transport and shipping center; industries: chemicals, steel, iron, silk, cotton textiles, plastics; population (2002 estimate) 2,311,500.
City Population (National Bureau of Statistics): the municipality had 28,846,170 people in 2010 and 32,054,159 in 2020.
- Part of a unified China
- from the 14th century
- Treaty port
- 1891
- Wartime capital of China
- 1937–1945
Monorails, bridges and an airport
In Chongqing, some trains run on one rail high above the streets. They are called monorails.
Chongqing's first monorail line opened on 18 June 2005, UrbanRail.Net says. Its trains run mostly above the ground. A second monorail line crosses both the Yangtze and the Jialing on bridges that carry roads and trains, and reaches Jiangbei International Airport.
Many bridges cross the city's rivers. One of them, the Chaotianmen Bridge, opened on 29 April 2009, according to Wikidata.
UrbanRail.Net: Line 2, the first Chongqing Monorail, opened from Jiaochangkou to Dongwuyuan (13.5 km) on 18 June 2005 after construction began at the end of 1999; mostly elevated; trains built by Changchun Rail Company and Hitachi. Monorail Line 3 runs north-south across the center, using combined road/rail bridges to cross the Yangtze (1.15 km) and Jialing (0.5 km), and reached Jiangbei International Airport on 30 December 2011. Line 1, the first full subway, began limited service in July 2011.
Wikidata (from the city's point, Q11725): Chaotianmen Bridge (Q1062588), official opening 29 April 2009, 8.05 km ENE; Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport (Q788417) 22.88 km NE.
- First monorail line
- opened 18 June 2005, mostly elevated
- Chaotianmen Bridge
- opened 29 April 2009 (Wikidata)
- Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport
- about 23 km northeast of the city's Wikidata point (Wikidata)
Hot, wet summers and mild winters
Summers in Chongqing are hot and rainy. Winters are cool, but not freezing.
The World Meteorological Organization's averages for 1961 to 1990 show hot summers: in July and August, average daily highs are above 32 °C, and even the average daily lows are 24.5 °C. In January the average high is 9.5 °C and the average low 5.6 °C.
About 1,140 millimeters of rain fall in a year, most of it from April to October. July is the wettest month, with 171 millimeters.
WMO World Weather Information Service, Chongqing (29.52° N, 106.48° E), 1961–1990: mean daily maximum 9.5 °C (January) to 32.8 °C (August), July 32.2 °C; mean daily minimum 5.6 °C (January) to 24.5 °C (July and August). Rainfall sums to 1,138 mm; April to October bring 981 mm, with July (171 mm), June (166 mm) and May (159 mm) the wettest months and January (20 mm) the driest; about 158 rain days a year, threshold not stated.
The WMO table for Chengdu, whose station point is about 270 km west-northwest, has the same January average high (9.5 °C) but colder winter lows and cooler summer highs (29.7 °C in August).
- Average daily highs (WMO, 1961–1990)
- 9.5 °C (January) to 32.8 °C (August)
- Average daily lows (same normals)
- 5.6 °C (January) to 24.5 °C (July, August)
- Rain in a year (sum of the monthly normals)
- about 1,140 mm
Work, trade and the river
Ships carry goods on the rivers. Factories in Chongqing make things like steel and cloth.
Chongqing is a center of transport and shipping, the Oxford World Encyclopedia says. Its list of industries includes chemicals, steel, iron, silk, cotton cloth and plastics.
The city's rail system, Chongqing Rail Transit, mixes ordinary subway lines and monorail lines, Wikidata says, and new lines and stations have opened almost every year since 2011, according to UrbanRail.Net.
World Encyclopedia (Oxford, via Encyclopedia.com): a transport and shipping center; industries: chemicals, steel, iron, silk, cotton textiles, plastics (the entry's population figure is a 2002 estimate, so the list may be dated). Wikidata: Chongqing Rail Transit (Q1190894), an urban rail system of rapid-transit and monorail lines. UrbanRail.Net lists openings on Lines 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 in most years from 2011 to 2026.
- Role
- a transport and shipping center
- Industries (World Encyclopedia)
- chemicals, steel, iron, silk, cotton textiles, plastics
- Rail network
- subway and monorail lines (Chongqing Rail Transit, Wikidata)
Chongqing on the map
Find China on the globe. Chongqing is far inland, on the great Yangtze River.
Chongqing lies at about 29.6° north and 106.6° east, far inland on the Yangtze River.
Measured from the city's center point on Wikidata, the World Financial Center and Hongyadong are both about 6.7 kilometers east-northeast, the Chaotianmen Bridge about 8 kilometers east-northeast, and the airport about 23 kilometers northeast.
Chongqing lies at about 29.57° N and 106.59° E (Natural Earth point, 8.53 km ENE of the Wikidata point, in the riverside center). From the Wikidata point (Q11725): Chongqing World Financial Center 6.64 km ENE; Hongyadong 6.71 km ENE; Twin River Bridges (incl. the Qiansimen Bridge) 7.87 km E; Chaotianmen Bridge 8.05 km ENE; Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport 22.88 km NE.
The WMO station point (29.52° N, 106.48° E) is 4.23 km SW of the Wikidata point.
- Latitude
- about 29.6° north
- Longitude
- about 106.6° east
- Municipality area
- about 82,000 km²
Amazing facts
-
Some of Chongqing's trains run on a single rail, high above the streets.
Chongqing's first monorail line opened on 18 June 2005, and its trains run mostly above the ground, UrbanRail.Net says.
UrbanRail.Net: Line 2, the first Chongqing Monorail (Jiaochangkou to Dongwuyuan, 13.5 km), opened 18 June 2005; mostly elevated; trains by Changchun Rail Company and Hitachi.
-
The whole Chongqing area is home to more than 32 million people.
Chongqing Municipality covers about 82,000 square kilometers, with countryside and towns as well as the city, and had 32,054,159 people at the 2020 census.
City Population (NBS): Chongqing Municipality, about 82,000 km², 32,054,159 at the 2020 census; urban population 9,580,819.
-
Chongqing's tallest tower in the photo can light up with words!
In the photo, the lights on the Chongqing World Financial Center spell 'Hello Chongqing, hello world' in Chinese.
Commons photo of 29 December 2019: the World Financial Center facade lit with 重庆你好 世界你好 ('Hello Chongqing, hello world').
-
In Chongqing summers, even the coolest time of day is warm.
In the WMO averages for 1961 to 1990, July and August in Chongqing have an average daily low of 24.5 °C.
WMO 1961–1990, Chongqing: mean daily minimum 24.5 °C in July and August.
Words to know
- confluence
- the place where two rivers join
- tributary
- a river that flows into a bigger river
- monorail
- a railway whose trains run on a single rail or beam
- treaty port
- a port opened to foreign trade under an agreement between countries
- municipality
- an area with its own local government; in China, some are as big as provinces
- census
- an official count of all the people in a place
Discovery challenge
-
Chongqing is in which country?
Chongqing is a city in which country?
Chongqing, a port on the Yangtze, is in which country?
- China
- India
- Brazil
Show the answer
China
China!
China.
China.
-
Which big river flows past Chongqing?
The Jialing River joins which big river at Chongqing?
The Jialing is a tributary of which river, which it joins at Chongqing?
- The Yangtze
- The Nile
- The Amazon
Show the answer
The Yangtze
The Yangtze!
The Yangtze.
The Yangtze.
-
What kind of train runs on one rail above the streets?
What kind of train did Chongqing open in 2005, running mostly above the ground?
Chongqing's Line 2, opened 18 June 2005, is what kind of railway?
- A monorail
- A steam train
- A cable car
Show the answer
A monorail
A monorail!
A monorail.
A monorail, mostly elevated.
-
Which month gets the most rain in Chongqing?
In the WMO averages, which month is the wettest?
WMO 1961–1990: which month has the highest rainfall, 171 mm?
- July
- January
- December
Show the answer
July
July!
July.
July (171 mm).
-
When did Chongqing become a port for foreign trade?
In which year did Chongqing become a treaty port?
According to the Oxford World Encyclopedia, Chongqing became a treaty port in which year?
- 1891
- 1991
- 1791
Show the answer
1891
1891!
1891.
1891.
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For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Locate Chongqing on the Yangtze River where the Jialing joins it.
- Tell the difference between a city and a much larger municipality around it.
- Describe how bridges and monorails help people cross rivers and hills.
- Read a climate table and find the hot, rainy season.
Recommended ages: 3 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- Why do you think many cities grow up where two rivers meet?
- Why might a city choose trains that run above the streets?
- Chongqing's municipality has 32 million people but its city has under 10 million. Where do the others live?
Try at home or in class
- River meeting: pour two colors of water into a tray from two sides and watch where they meet.
- Bridge test: build a paper bridge between two books and see how many coins it can hold.
- Rain chart: plot Chongqing's twelve monthly rain totals and color the rainy months.
Key vocabulary: confluence, tributary, monorail, treaty port, municipality, census
Where these facts come from
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- Natural Earth vector data , Natural Earth (NACIS) (Public domain)
- China: Provinces and Major Cities , City Population (Thomas Brinkhoff), from China's population censuses
- Chungking , World Encyclopedia (Oxford University Press), via Encyclopedia.com
- Chongqing Metro (Subway & Monorail) , UrbanRail.Net
- Chongqing: climatological information , World Meteorological Organization, World Weather Information Service
- File:Chongqing Nightscape.jpg (Jay Huang, 29 December 2019) , Wikimedia Commons
- Wikimedia Commons , Wikimedia Foundation (Per file (public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA); see each media record)
Checked, not yet human-reviewed. Last updated November 1, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.