City Asia
Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg is a big city in Russia, near the Ural Mountains. It has long, straight streets and lots of trees.
Yekaterinburg is the largest city of the Ural region of Russia. It grew up near copper ore in the 1700s and became a railway hub and a city of factories. At the start of 2025 about 1,548,187 people lived there, the fourth-largest number of any city in Russia.
Yekaterinburg was founded in the 1720s (Universalis gives 1721) near copper deposits in the Urals. The Siberian road at the end of the 18th century and the first railway across the Urals made it a crossroads; seven railway lines now meet there, feeding its machine-building industry. Rosstat estimate 1 January 2025: 1,548,187 (rank 4).
Photo: Vyacheslav Bukharov, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Discover Yekaterinburg
Yekaterinburg is a big city in Russia. It is near the Ural Mountains.
More than one and a half million people live there.
Yekaterinburg is the most populous city of the Urals, Universalis says. The Iset River runs through it, according to Wikidata.
At the start of 2025 about 1,548,187 people lived there, according to Russia's statistics service. Only Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Novosibirsk had more people. Early in the 19th century Yekaterinburg competed with the city of Perm to be first in the Urals, and it came out ahead.
Universalis: with 1,444,500 inhabitants in 2016, Yekaterinburg is the most populous city of the Urals and the fourth city of the Russian Federation; in the early 19th century it competed with Perm for first place in the Urals, and its lead is now challenged by the fast growth of Chelyabinsk.
City Population (1979 and 1989 from pop-stat.mashke.org, later figures from the Federal State Statistics Service): 1,211,172 (census 1979), 1,364,621 (1989), 1,293,537 (2002), 1,349,772 (2010), 1,544,376 (2021) and 1,548,187 (estimate, 1 January 2025), rank 4 after Moscow (13,274,285), Saint Petersburg and Novosibirsk.
- Country
- Russia (the Ural region)
- People in Yekaterinburg (estimate, 1 January 2025)
- 1,548,187
- People at the 2021 census
- 1,544,376
- River
- the Iset (Wikidata)
A city of long, straight streets
Look from high up over the city! Long, straight streets run between blocks of buildings and green trees.
This aerial photo shows Yekaterinburg on 30 July 2022. Long, straight avenues lined with trees run toward the center, between blocks of apartment buildings with green courtyards.
In the distance stand tall towers, with a lake on the right, and beyond the city a wide, flat land of forests stretches to the horizon.
Commons: own work by Vyacheslav Bukharov, 30 July 2022, CC BY-SA 4.0; description (Russian): 'a view of Yekaterinburg from a height'. The recorded position is about 2.4 km east-northeast of the city's Wikidata point.
In the picture: a factory district with a chimney and a railway at left; a sports pitch among apartment blocks in front; tree-lined avenues and a railway line crossing the middle; a cluster of high-rise towers, including a tall blue tower, in the center; a lake and its arms at the right; forest and more lakes on the flat horizon under small clouds.
- Photo
- an aerial view of Yekaterinburg, 30 July 2022
- Vysotsky
- a skyscraper 188.3 m tall, dated to 2011 on Wikidata
- Plotinka
- a dam on the Iset River, dated to 1723 on Wikidata
Copper, roads and railways
Long ago, people found copper near Yekaterinburg, so they built a town there. Later, roads and railways came to the city.
Yekaterinburg was founded on purpose in 1721 by the geographer V. N. Tatishchev, Universalis says, and copper ore found nearby soon showed that it was a good place for a town. The city's old dam, Plotinka, is dated to 1723 on Wikidata.
At the end of the 18th century the great Siberian road was built through the city. About a hundred years later, the first railway across the Ural Mountains, coming from Perm, reached Yekaterinburg.
Universalis: created deliberately in 1721 by the geographer V. N. Tatishchev, ancestor of the first great family of Ural ironmasters; the discovery of copper ore nearby quickly showed the value of the site, opposite the outlet of a pass toward Perm. The main route from Moscow to Siberia then ran much farther north; only at the end of the century, with the great Siberian road from Perm to Tyumen, Tara and Tomsk, did the city gain fully from its position. A century later the first trans-Ural railway, from Perm, reached Yekaterinburg fourteen years before the Trans-Siberian reached Chelyabinsk.
Wikidata gives 1723 for both the city's inception and the Plotinka dam.
- Founded
- 1721, deliberately, by the geographer V. N. Tatishchev (Universalis)
- Why here
- copper ore deposits nearby
- End of the 18th century
- the great Siberian road from Perm to Tyumen, Tara and Tomsk
Seven railways and a metro
Many train lines meet in Yekaterinburg. The city has a metro and an international airport too.
Seven railway lines meet at Yekaterinburg, Universalis says, most of them from the north. They bring iron ore, bauxite, coal, natural gas and oil to the city's industries.
The city has a metro, the Yekaterinburg Metro, which Wikidata says was officially opened on 26 April 1991. Koltsovo Airport, an international airport, lies about 15.5 kilometers southeast of the city's center point on Wikidata.
Universalis: the city grew again when seven railway lines came to converge on it, mostly from the northern lands whose resources the urban industries need: iron ore and bauxite, coal from Kizel and Vorkuta, and natural gas and oil from the lower Ob valley.
Wikidata: Yekaterinburg Metro (Q750441), official opening 26 April 1991, 12.7 km long; Koltsovo Airport (Q1334495), an international airport, 15.48 km SE of the city point (Q887).
- Railways
- seven lines meet at the city
- Yekaterinburg Metro
- officially opened on 26 April 1991 (Wikidata)
- Koltsovo Airport
- an international airport about 15.5 km southeast of the city's Wikidata point (Wikidata)
Long, cold winters and warm summers
Winters in Yekaterinburg are long and very cold. Summers are warm, and July is the warmest and wettest month.
The Japan Meteorological Agency's averages for 1991 to 2020 give Yekaterinburg a January average temperature of -12.5 °C and a July average of 19.4 °C. From November to March the monthly average stays below freezing.
The World Meteorological Organization's table, which does not say which years it covers, gives about 498 millimeters of rain and snow a year. July is the wettest month, with 81 millimeters, and March the driest, with 16.
JMA world normals, Yekaterinburg (56.83° N, 60.63° E, 280 m), 1991–2020 monthly mean temperature: -12.5, -10.4, -3.0, 5.2, 12.6, 17.0, 19.4, 16.9, 11.1, 3.5, -4.5, -10.5 °C.
WMO World Weather Information Service, Ekaterinburg (56.87° N, 60.43° E; no period given): mean daily maximum -11.0 °C (January) to 24.0 °C (July); mean daily minimum -18.1 °C (January) to 13.8 °C (July); precipitation sums to 498 mm, with July (81 mm) the wettest month and March (16 mm) the driest.
- Average temperature (JMA normals, 1991–2020)
- -12.5 °C (January) to 19.4 °C (July)
- Average daily highs (WMO table, period not stated)
- -11.0 °C (January) to 24.0 °C (July)
- Rain and snow in a year (sum of the WMO monthly values)
- about 498 mm
Machines, motors and colleges
Factories in Yekaterinburg make machines and electric motors. Many students come to study at its colleges.
Yekaterinburg's workshops specialize in building machines, Universalis says: machine tools, electric motors and equipment for the chemical industry, known across the country for their quality. The city also has many well-known colleges and universities.
In the center stands the Vysotsky skyscraper, 188.3 meters tall according to Wikidata.
Universalis: Yekaterinburg's workshops specialize in mechanical engineering; the machine tools, electric motors and chemical-industry equipment made there are famous for their quality throughout the country, as are its many higher-education establishments and the research laboratory set up there by the USSR Academy of Sciences.
Wikidata: Vysotsky (Q65926775), a skyscraper, 188.3 m, 2011, 0.13 km ENE of the city point; Plotinka (Q4365321), a dam and heritage site, 1723, 0.63 km WNW.
- Specialty
- machine building: machine tools, electric motors, equipment for the chemical industry
- Education
- many well-known higher-education institutions
- Vysotsky skyscraper
- 188.3 m, about 0.1 km east-northeast of the city's Wikidata point (Wikidata)
Yekaterinburg on the map
Find Russia on the globe. Yekaterinburg is near the Ural Mountains, a long way east of Moscow.
Yekaterinburg lies at about 56.9° north, in the Ural region of Russia.
Measured from the city's center point on Wikidata, the Vysotsky skyscraper is about 0.1 kilometers east-northeast, the Plotinka dam about 0.6 kilometers west-northwest and Koltsovo Airport about 15.5 kilometers southeast. The town was placed opposite the opening of a mountain pass leading toward Perm, its old rival, Universalis says.
Yekaterinburg lies at about 56.85° N and 60.60° E (Natural Earth point, 2.04 km NNW of the Wikidata point). From the Wikidata point (Q887): Vysotsky 0.13 km ENE; Plotinka 0.63 km WNW; Koltsovo Airport 15.48 km SE. The JMA station point is 1.22 km ESE and the WMO table's point 11.75 km WNW of the Wikidata point.
- Latitude
- about 56.9° north
- Longitude
- about 60.6° east
- Region
- the Ural region of Russia
Amazing facts
-
The first railway across the Ural Mountains came to Yekaterinburg.
The first railway across the Urals, coming from Perm, reached Yekaterinburg fourteen years before the Trans-Siberian Railway reached Chelyabinsk, Universalis says.
Universalis: the first trans-Ural railway, from Perm, reached Yekaterinburg fourteen years before the Trans-Siberian reached Chelyabinsk.
-
Yekaterinburg was built where people found copper.
Copper ore found near Yekaterinburg soon showed what a good place it was for a town, Universalis says.
Universalis: the discovery of copper ore deposits nearby quickly underlined the value of the site.
-
In January, Yekaterinburg is far below freezing on average.
The average January temperature in Yekaterinburg is -12.5 °C, the Japan Meteorological Agency's 1991–2020 normals show.
JMA 1991–2020: monthly mean temperature -12.5 °C in January and -10.5 °C in December; five months (November to March) average below 0 °C.
-
Yekaterinburg has a skyscraper almost 190 meters tall.
The Vysotsky skyscraper in Yekaterinburg is 188.3 meters tall, Wikidata says.
Wikidata: Vysotsky (Q65926775), a skyscraper, height 188.3 m, 2011.
Words to know
- ore
- rock with a useful metal in it, such as copper or iron
- machine tool
- a machine used to cut and shape metal to make other machines
- dam
- a wall built across a river to hold back water
- metro
- a city train system that often runs underground
- estimate
- an official count worked out from records instead of asking everyone
- census
- an official count of all the people in a place
Discovery challenge
-
Yekaterinburg is a city in which country?
Yekaterinburg is the largest city of the Urals in which country?
Yekaterinburg ranks fourth by population among the cities of which country?
- Russia
- Spain
- Ghana
Show the answer
Russia
Russia!
Russia.
Russia.
-
Which metal did people find near Yekaterinburg long ago?
Which ore found nearby helped show that Yekaterinburg was a good place for a town?
Universalis says deposits of which ore underlined the value of the site?
- Copper
- Gold
- Tin
Show the answer
Copper
Copper!
Copper ore.
Copper ore.
-
How many railway lines meet in Yekaterinburg?
How many railway lines meet at Yekaterinburg, Universalis says?
Universalis says the city grew again when how many railway lines converged on it?
- Seven
- Two
- Twenty
Show the answer
Seven
Seven!
Seven.
Seven.
-
What do factories in Yekaterinburg make?
Yekaterinburg's workshops specialize in building what?
Universalis says Yekaterinburg's workshops specialize in what kind of products?
- Machines and motors
- Chocolate
- Surfboards
Show the answer
Machines and motors
Machines and motors!
Machines: machine tools and electric motors.
Mechanical engineering: machine tools, electric motors and chemical-industry equipment.
-
Which month is the warmest in Yekaterinburg?
In the JMA averages, which month is the warmest?
JMA 1991–2020: which month has the highest mean temperature, 19.4 °C?
- July
- January
- October
Show the answer
July
July!
July.
July (19.4 °C).
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For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Locate Yekaterinburg in the Urals and explain why a town might be founded near ore.
- Describe how roads and railways can turn a town into a big city.
- Read a cold-climate table with months below freezing.
- Compare census counts from 1979 to 2021.
Recommended ages: 3 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- Why might a city with many railway lines grow lots of factories?
- What would daily life be like where five months average below freezing?
- Why might people build a dam across a river in a new town?
Try at home or in class
- Railway hub: draw a city with seven railway lines coming in and label what each brings.
- Ore hunt: look at rocks with a magnifying glass and sort them by color and shine.
- Temperature line: plot Yekaterinburg's monthly average temperatures and color the months below 0 °C.
Key vocabulary: ore, machine tool, dam, metro, estimate, census
Where these facts come from
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- Natural Earth vector data , Natural Earth (NACIS) (Public domain)
- Ekaterinbourg , Encyclopaedia Universalis
- Russia: Federal Districts and Major Cities , City Population (Thomas Brinkhoff), from the Federal State Statistics Service
- Normals data: Yekaterinburg (28440) , Japan Meteorological Agency
- World normals by region and country (normals period 1991-2020) , Japan Meteorological Agency
- Ekaterinburg: climatological information , World Meteorological Organization, World Weather Information Service
- File:Aerial photos of Yekaterinburg (July '22) - 16.jpg (Vyacheslav Bukharov, 30 July 2022) , 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.