Council area · Scotland
Glasgow City
Explore Glasgow City through civic museums that bring together art, transport, engineering and everyday urban life.
Quick facts
- Type of place
- Council area
- Nation
- Scotland
- Official identifier
- gss:S12000049
- Part of
- Scotland (Nation)
Overview
Glasgow City is a council area in Scotland, distinct from the wider Greater Glasgow settlement. Its civic museums offer different ways into the city’s story: art and museum collections at Kelvingrove, contemporary art at the Gallery of Modern Art, and transport and technology at Riverside.
Glasgow City is a council area in Scotland.
Population and demographics
- Land area
- 174.62 km²
-
Figures for . NRS mid-2025 administrative areas; land area from ONS SAM through 31 December 2024.
National Records of Scotland · nrs-mid-2025 · Table 4!E20 (binary spreadsheet decimal rounded to 6 dp). Released 14 July 2026.
Open Government Licence v3.0 · Source: National Records of Scotland. Crown copyright; Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Population
- 654,330 people
-
Figures for . NRS mid-2025 administrative areas; land area from ONS SAM through 31 December 2024.
National Records of Scotland · nrs-mid-2025 · Table 1!E22. Released 14 July 2026.
Open Government Licence v3.0 · Source: National Records of Scotland. Crown copyright; Open Government Licence v3.0.
Population density: 3,747.1 people per km²
Calculated from the population and land area for 30 June 2025, using figures from the same release and covering the same boundaries.
Art collections and industrial life
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum brings art and museum collections together. The Gallery of Modern Art, in the city centre, houses Glasgow’s contemporary art collection. Alongside Riverside Museum, these civic institutions tell different urban stories through their collections. Riverside stands where the River Kelvin meets the River Clyde. Its transport and technology collections explore Glasgow’s shipbuilding, locomotive manufacture and engineering. A reconstructed cobbled street with shops, homes and a subway station connects those industries with everyday urban life.