I'm not sure what you mean by this... if you only count the population inside the city limits? Then LA has nearly 4 million residents (of course, inside city li

I'm not sure what you mean by this... if you only count the population inside the city limits? Then LA has nearly 4 million residents (of course, inside city limits includes a lot of neighborhoods that are suburban in character). Whether you're talking city limits or metro area, LA is number 2, though the Chicago metro area is pretty close behind.