List of two-tier counties of England

This is a list of two-tier counties of England by population.

It includes those non-metropolitan counties (also known as shire counties) with a two-tier county council structure and does not include metropolitan counties or unitary authorities.

Where a unitary authority has separated from a shire county the population of the unitary authority is counted elsewhere. For example, the population of Blackpool is not included in Lancashire in this table.

The figures are mid-year estimates for 2022 from the Office for National Statistics.

Densities are calculated from population and area values.

CountyPopulationArea
(in km2)
Density
(people/km2)
Kent1,593,1913,544449
Essex1,519,5093,458439
Hampshire1,416,8083,678385
Lancashire1,253,1542,894433
Surrey1,214,5401,663731
Hertfordshire1,204,5881,643733
Norfolk925,2995,384172
Staffordshire886,2842,620338
West Sussex892,3361,991448
Nottinghamshire834,8222,085400
Derbyshire803,4642,547315
Devon826,3196,564126
Suffolk768,5553,800202
Lincolnshire775,5245,937131
Leicestershire722,1552,083347
Oxfordshire738,2762,605283
Cambridgeshire689,1093,046226
Gloucestershire652,4092,653246
Worcestershire609,2161,741350
Warwickshire607,6041,975308
East Sussex550,7201,709322