These 40 cities generate the most GDP per person, check the full list here

A city’s economic strength is not always about how big its overall economy is. Looking at how much economic output is generated for each resident gives a different picture, and on this measure, US cities dominate the global rankings. San Jose has emerged as the world’s top city by GDP per person, with output of $238,700 per resident, while 27 of the top 40 cities are from the US, Visual Capitalist reported.

The figures are part of the 2026 Global Cities Index published by Oxford Economics. They are based on each city’s 2025 GDP and population and are shown in US dollars.

GDP per person measures a city’s economic output relative to its population. This means a smaller city with highly productive industries can rank ahead of a much larger city with a bigger overall economy.

San Jose leads by a wide margin

San Jose leads the ranking at $238,700 per person. The Silicon Valley metro has a dense concentration of some of the world’s largest technology companies and highly productive industries.

San Francisco ranks second at $181,889, followed by Dublin at $159,732 and Basel at $156,312. Seattle is fifth at $152,030.

Boston ranks eighth at $135,264, while New York is 10th at $129,253. Other US cities in the top 20 include Salt Lake City at $126,575, Durham at $121,525, Washington, DC at $120,638, Bridgeport at $119,539, Hartford at $114,541, Denver at $111,852, Des Moines at $111,644, Los Angeles at $110,393, Austin at $109,458 and Nashville at $108,609.

New York’s position highlights the difference between total GDP and GDP per person. While New York has a far larger overall economy than most cities on the list, GDP per person measures output relative to population rather than the sheer size of the economy.

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Smaller metros such as Salt Lake City, Durham, Des Moines and Omaha also make the top 40, showing that high output per resident is not limited to the US’s largest urban areas.

US cities dominate the top 40

American cities account for 27 of the 40 places in the ranking, or more than two-thirds of the total. The list includes not just technology hubs but also centres of finance, professional services, energy, healthcare and advanced industries.

The strong showing of US cities reflects the broader scale of the American economy. The US produced roughly $30.6 trillion in nominal GDP in 2025, making it the world’s largest national economy.

The strength of the US economy is also visible at the state level. Based on IMF projections and US Bureau of Economic Analysis data, 19 US states would rank among the world’s 50 largest economies if compared with countries on the basis of nominal GDP.

California alone generated roughly $4.3 trillion in economic output in 2025, putting its economy on a scale comparable with some of the world’s largest national economies.

European cities also rank high

Europe has several cities among the highest-ranked non-US entries. Dublin is third globally at $159,732 per person, Basel is fourth at $156,312 and Luxembourg City is sixth at $147,396.

Switzerland is particularly well represented, with Basel, Geneva, Zurich, Bern and Lausanne all making the top 40.

Many of these cities combine relatively small populations with high-value industries such as pharmaceuticals, finance, technology and professional services. This helps push economic output per resident higher.

Outside North America and Europe, only a few cities make the top 40. Singapore ranks 36th at $99,354, Dammam is 39th at $97,074, and Perth rounds out the ranking at $96,958.