Argentina Map – Cities & Towns [AR]
Argentina occupies the southern cone of South America, with a long north–south axis from the subtropical north to Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego. A city-and-town map of Argentina is best read through three layers: the federal capital of Buenos Aires, the provincial capitals that anchor the country’s 23 provinces, and the larger urban corridors around the Río de la Plata, the Pampas, Cuyo, the Northwest, the Northeast, and Patagonia. Population values vary by whether the source counts a city jurisdiction, a municipality, a partido, or a wider urban agglomeration.
Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires
AR / ARG
23 Provinces + 1 Autonomous City
Capital, Provincial Capitals, Large Urban Areas
Map Orientation
Buenos Aires sits on the Río de la Plata and dominates the national settlement pattern. Córdoba, Rosario, Mendoza, Tucumán, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Salta, Santa Fe, and San Juan form the next visible level of the urban network. Patagonia has fewer large cities, but its ports, provincial capitals, and Andean tourism centers are central to map reading.
Pampas Cities
Andes Gateways
Patagonian Ports
City Label Logic
Many Argentine place labels use different boundary ideas. A map may show Buenos Aires as the autonomous city, the wider metropolitan area, or the Buenos Aires urban region. Mendoza, Tucumán, Córdoba, Rosario, Neuquén, and La Plata may also appear as city centers or agglomerations depending on the dataset.
How To Read The Argentina Cities And Towns Map
Federal Capital Layer
Buenos Aires is not part of Buenos Aires Province. It is an autonomous city and the federal capital. On national maps, it is usually shown as a separate jurisdiction beside the much larger Buenos Aires Province.
Provincial Capital Layer
Each province has a capital city or seat. These labels are useful for reading the administrative map even when a province’s largest urban area is somewhere else, as in Santa Fe, Chubut, and Río Negro.
Metropolitan Layer
Greater Buenos Aires, Greater Córdoba, Greater Rosario, Greater Mendoza, Greater Tucumán, and Greater La Plata may be shown as urban regions rather than single municipal boundaries.
Distance Layer
Argentina’s long north–south shape creates large distances between map clusters. Patagonia has fewer large city labels, while the Pampas and Río de la Plata area show dense urban networks.
Selected Cities, Towns And Urban Map Anchors In Argentina
This table selects major cities, provincial capitals, ports, Andean gateways, and regional centers. Population values are rounded map-reference figures and should be checked against the original census boundary before statistical use.
| Place | Type | Administrative Unit | Region / Area | Approx. Population / Scale | Latitude | Longitude | Map Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buenos Aires | Autonomous city / federal capital | Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires | Río de la Plata | about 3.12 million city jurisdiction | -34.6037 | -58.3816 | National anchor | Wider metropolitan counts are much larger than the autonomous city count. |
| La Plata | Provincial capital | Buenos Aires | Río de la Plata / Pampas | about 787,000 urban agglomeration scale | -34.9205 | -57.9536 | Provincial capital | Capital of Buenos Aires Province, not the national capital. |
| Córdoba | Provincial capital / major city | Córdoba | Central Argentina | about 1.5 million city scale | -31.4201 | -64.1888 | Interior urban hub | Often shown as the largest interior city label after Buenos Aires. |
| Rosario | Major city / river port | Santa Fe | Paraná River | about 1.2 million agglomeration scale | -32.9442 | -60.6505 | River corridor hub | Large city in Santa Fe Province; the provincial capital is Santa Fe. |
| Mendoza | Provincial capital | Mendoza | Cuyo / Andes | about 937,000 agglomeration scale | -32.8895 | -68.8458 | Andes gateway | Main western urban label near routes toward Chile. |
| San Miguel de Tucumán | Provincial capital | Tucumán | Northwest | about 794,000 agglomeration scale | -26.8241 | -65.2226 | Northwest hub | Often shortened to Tucumán on compact maps. |
| Mar del Plata | Coastal city | Buenos Aires | Atlantic coast | about 593,000 city scale | -38.0055 | -57.5426 | Atlantic coastal anchor | Large coastal city and port area in Buenos Aires Province. |
| Salta | Provincial capital | Salta | Northwest | about 539,000 agglomeration scale | -24.7821 | -65.4232 | Northern valley hub | Gateway to highland and valley routes in northwestern Argentina. |
| Santa Fe | Provincial capital | Santa Fe | Litoral / Paraná River | about 490,000 agglomeration scale | -31.6333 | -60.7000 | Provincial capital | Administrative capital of Santa Fe Province. |
| San Juan | Provincial capital | San Juan | Cuyo | about 461,000 agglomeration scale | -31.5375 | -68.5364 | Cuyo city anchor | Andean foothill and dry-valley settlement center. |
| Resistencia | Provincial capital | Chaco | Northeast / Chaco | about 386,000 agglomeration scale | -27.4514 | -58.9867 | Northeast urban pair | Linked visually with Corrientes across the Paraná River corridor. |
| Santiago del Estero | Provincial capital | Santiago del Estero | Northwest / Chaco transition | about 361,000 with La Banda | -27.7844 | -64.2669 | Interior route hub | Frequently mapped with La Banda as a combined urban area. |
| Corrientes | Provincial capital | Corrientes | Northeast / Paraná River | about 346,000 city scale | -27.4692 | -58.8306 | River city | Provincial capital facing the Resistencia area. |
| Neuquén | Provincial capital | Neuquén | North Patagonia | about 341,000 agglomeration scale | -38.9516 | -68.0591 | Patagonian urban hub | Closely linked with Plottier and Cipolletti in regional mapping. |
| Posadas | Provincial capital | Misiones | Northeast | about 320,000 city scale | -27.3621 | -55.9009 | Border-region anchor | Capital of Misiones Province on the Paraná River corridor. |
| San Salvador de Jujuy | Provincial capital | Jujuy | Northwest | about 310,000 agglomeration scale | -24.1858 | -65.2995 | Northern highland gateway | Often paired with Palpalá in urban-area references. |
| Bahía Blanca | Port city | Buenos Aires | Southern Pampas / Atlantic | about 291,000 city scale | -38.7196 | -62.2724 | Southern port anchor | Large city in the south of Buenos Aires Province. |
| Paraná | Provincial capital | Entre Ríos | Mesopotamia / Paraná River | about 264,000 city scale | -31.7413 | -60.5115 | Provincial capital | Capital of Entre Ríos Province, near the Santa Fe river crossing. |
| Formosa | Provincial capital | Formosa | Northeast / Paraguay River | about 222,000 city scale | -26.1849 | -58.1731 | Northern river city | Capital of Formosa Province. |
| San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca | Provincial capital | Catamarca | Northwest | about 195,000 agglomeration scale | -28.4696 | -65.7852 | Provincial capital | Usually labeled as Catamarca on compact maps. |
| La Rioja | Provincial capital | La Rioja | Northwest / Cuyo transition | about 179,000 city scale | -29.4131 | -66.8558 | Provincial capital | Dry-region city east of the Andes foothills. |
| Comodoro Rivadavia | Port / energy city | Chubut | Patagonia / Atlantic | about 175,000 city scale | -45.8656 | -67.4822 | Patagonian coast hub | Larger than Rawson, the provincial capital. |
| San Carlos de Bariloche | Andean city | Río Negro | Patagonia / Andes | about 161,000 department scale | -41.1335 | -71.3103 | Andean lake-region anchor | Usually labeled Bariloche on maps. |
| Río Cuarto | Regional city | Córdoba | Central Argentina | about 157,000 city scale | -33.1232 | -64.3493 | Regional center | Southern Córdoba city label. |
| Santa Rosa | Provincial capital | La Pampa | Pampas / Patagonia transition | about 100,000 rounded | -36.6203 | -64.2906 | Provincial capital | Capital of La Pampa Province. |
| Puerto Iguazú | Border / tourism city | Misiones | Northeast | about 82,000 city scale | -25.5972 | -54.5786 | Border and falls gateway | Useful marker near Brazil and Paraguay border geography. |
| Río Gallegos | Provincial capital | Santa Cruz | Southern Patagonia | about 96,000 city scale | -51.6230 | -69.2168 | Southern provincial capital | Capital of Santa Cruz Province. |
| Ushuaia | Provincial capital | Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur | Tierra del Fuego | about 82,000 rounded | -54.8019 | -68.3030 | Southern map anchor | Southern provincial capital on Tierra del Fuego. |
| Viedma | Provincial capital | Río Negro | Patagonia / Atlantic side | about 53,000 city scale | -40.8135 | -62.9967 | Provincial capital | Capital of Río Negro Province. |
| Rawson | Provincial capital | Chubut | Patagonia / Atlantic side | about 25,000 city scale | -43.3002 | -65.1023 | Provincial capital | Administrative capital; nearby Trelew and Puerto Madryn often appear as larger labels. |
Argentina’s Administrative Hierarchy For Map Labels
Argentina is a federal country. The first-level political map is made of 23 provinces and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires. Provinces are subdivided into departments or, in Buenos Aires Province, partidos. Local government names and settlement labels can vary between provinces, so map users should treat “city,” “town,” “municipality,” and “locality” as dataset-dependent labels.
Autonomous City
Buenos Aires is both the federal capital and a first-level jurisdiction.
Provinces
Each province has its own capital or seat used on administrative maps.
Departments, Partidos, Municipalities
Lower-level boundaries are not named the same way across the country.
Provinces, Capital Cities And Regional Map Context
| Jurisdiction | Capital / Seat | Broad Region | Map Context | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires | Buenos Aires | Río de la Plata | Federal capital | Separate from Buenos Aires Province. |
| Buenos Aires | La Plata | Pampas / Atlantic | Most populous province | Includes many partidos in the Buenos Aires metropolitan belt. |
| Catamarca | San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca | Northwest | Valley and mountain province | Capital often shortened to Catamarca on maps. |
| Chaco | Resistencia | Northeast / Chaco | River and plains province | Resistencia and Corrientes form a visible cross-river urban pair. |
| Chubut | Rawson | Patagonia | Atlantic and interior plateau | Comodoro Rivadavia is a larger city label than the capital. |
| Córdoba | Córdoba | Central Argentina | Large interior urban region | The capital city is also the province’s largest map label. |
| Corrientes | Corrientes | Northeast | Paraná and Uruguay river corridors | Capital sits near the Paraná River opposite Chaco Province. |
| Entre Ríos | Paraná | Mesopotamia | Between Paraná and Uruguay rivers | Concordia and Gualeguaychú are also common city labels. |
| Formosa | Formosa | Northeast | Paraguay River corridor | Capital city marks the eastern river edge of the province. |
| Jujuy | San Salvador de Jujuy | Northwest | Highland and valley routes | Often mapped near Salta on national-scale maps. |
| La Pampa | Santa Rosa | Pampas / Patagonia transition | Interior plains | General Pico is another common provincial city label. |
| La Rioja | La Rioja | Northwest / Cuyo transition | Dry valleys and mountain ranges | Chilecito may appear as a secondary city label. |
| Mendoza | Mendoza | Cuyo / Andes | Western urban and route hub | Greater Mendoza includes multiple municipalities. |
| Misiones | Posadas | Northeast | Paraná River and border region | Puerto Iguazú is a common secondary label near the falls. |
| Neuquén | Neuquén | Patagonia | Upper Río Negro / Limay area | Urban links often cross into Río Negro Province. |
| Río Negro | Viedma | Patagonia | Atlantic and Andean sections | Bariloche is a larger tourism and city label than the capital. |
| Salta | Salta | Northwest | Valleys, highlands, and eastern lowlands | Orán and Tartagal appear on more detailed northern maps. |
| San Juan | San Juan | Cuyo | Andean foothill settlement | Capital city anchors the province’s main urban area. |
| San Luis | San Luis | Cuyo / Pampas transition | Interior corridor | Villa Mercedes is another common label. |
| Santa Cruz | Río Gallegos | Southern Patagonia | Atlantic coast and plateau | Caleta Olivia and El Calafate may appear on regional maps. |
| Santa Fe | Santa Fe | Pampas / Litoral | Paraná River and agricultural cities | Rosario is the largest city label in the province. |
| Santiago del Estero | Santiago del Estero | Northwest / Chaco transition | Interior lowland routes | La Banda is commonly mapped beside the capital city. |
| Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur | Ushuaia | South Atlantic / Tierra del Fuego | Southern islands and claimed areas in official Argentine maps | World-reference datasets may handle South Atlantic territories differently. |
| Tucumán | San Miguel de Tucumán | Northwest | Dense small province and urban belt | Maps often shorten the capital name to Tucumán. |
Regional City Clusters
Buenos Aires, La Plata, Rosario, Santa Fe, Paraná, Mar del Plata, Bahía Blanca, Córdoba, and Río Cuarto form the densest city field on national maps.
San Miguel de Tucumán, Salta, San Salvador de Jujuy, Catamarca, La Rioja, and Santiago del Estero mark valley, highland, and interior-route settlement.
Resistencia, Corrientes, Posadas, Formosa, and Puerto Iguazú show river and border geography along the Paraná and Paraguay systems.
Neuquén, Bariloche, Comodoro Rivadavia, Rawson, Viedma, Río Gallegos, and Ushuaia are spaced far apart, so zoom level changes the map strongly.
Coast, Rivers And Andes Settlement Pattern
Argentina’s large-city pattern follows navigable rivers, fertile plains, Atlantic ports, and Andean valleys. The Río de la Plata and Paraná corridor carries the densest cluster of labels. The Atlantic coast shows port and resort cities, while the Andes side is marked by Mendoza, San Juan, Salta, Jujuy, and Bariloche.
Paraná River
Atlantic Coast
Andes Edge
Patagonian Plateau
Map Data Notes And Sources
What Is Reliable
- Argentina is divided into 24 first-level jurisdictions: 23 provinces and the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.
- The national capital is the Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires.
- ISO country coding uses AR as alpha-2, ARG as alpha-3, and 032 as numeric code.
- Coordinates are approximate city-center points for map display, not parcel or address coordinates.
What May Vary
- Population values may refer to a city jurisdiction, department, partido, municipality, locality, or wider agglomeration.
- Buenos Aires metropolitan counts are not the same as the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires count.
- Official Argentine area figures may include areas treated differently in some international map datasets.
- Some city names are shortened in map labels, such as Tucumán for San Miguel de Tucumán.
Source List
- Argentina.gob.ar — Argentina, nuestro país
- Argentina.gob.ar — Provincias
- Instituto Geográfico Nacional — División Política, Superficie y Población
- INDEC — Censo Nacional de Población, Hogares y Viviendas 2022
- ISO Online Browsing Platform — Argentina Country Code
- GeoNames — Argentina Largest Cities
- OpenStreetMap — Argentina Boundary Relation
FAQ
What is the capital of Argentina?
The capital of Argentina is the Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires. It is a first-level jurisdiction and is separate from Buenos Aires Province, whose capital is La Plata.
What are the main cities shown on an Argentina map?
The main city labels usually include Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Rosario, Mendoza, San Miguel de Tucumán, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Salta, Santa Fe, San Juan, Resistencia, Corrientes, Neuquén, Posadas, and Bahía Blanca.
How many provinces does Argentina have?
Argentina has 23 provinces plus the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires. Together, they form 24 first-level jurisdictions on the political map.
Why do population numbers vary for Argentine cities?
Population counts vary because sources may count a city jurisdiction, a municipality, a partido, a department, a locality, or a wider urban agglomeration. Buenos Aires, Mendoza, Córdoba, Rosario, Tucumán, and La Plata are especially sensitive to boundary choice.
Is Buenos Aires Province the same as Buenos Aires city?
No. Buenos Aires city is the autonomous federal capital. Buenos Aires Province is a separate province surrounding much of the metropolitan region, and its capital is La Plata.
Which Patagonian cities are useful map anchors?
Neuquén, San Carlos de Bariloche, Comodoro Rivadavia, Viedma, Rawson, Río Gallegos, and Ushuaia are useful Patagonian map anchors because they mark provincial administration, Atlantic ports, Andean routes, or southern island geography.