National central city

There are nine national central cities: Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Wuhan, Xi'an, and Zhengzhou.

[1] This designation was formulated by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development in 2005 as a first step in reforming urbanization in China.

The national central cities' spheres of influence have great impact on surrounding cities in modernizing and integrating services in various fields, including infrastructure, finance, public education, social welfare, sanitation, business licensing, and urban planning.

3Prefecture capital status established by Heilongjiang Province and not recognized by Ministry of Civil Affairs.

5The claimed province of Taiwan no longer have any internal division announced by Ministry of Civil Affairs of PRC, due to lack of actual jurisdiction.