Where the sun stops setting in summer
8 of the Northernmost Cities in the World
Above the Arctic Circle, the rules change — the sun doesn't set in June and doesn't rise in December. These are the largest places that still call themselves cities up there.
Only a few cities sit above the Arctic Circle, where polar day and polar night each last for weeks. Together they form a kind of high-latitude club — connected more by climate than geography.
Iceland, Iceland · pop. 139,804
Just south of the Arctic Circle, Reykjavík is the world's northernmost national capital — and one of the smallest.
Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia · pop. 176,735
Norilsk is one of the world's northernmost cities of any size — a nickel-mining centre built almost entirely on permafrost.
Lapland, Finland · pop. 66,201
Rovaniemi sits squarely on the Arctic Circle and has built much of its identity — and economy — around it.
Alaska, United States · pop. 32,515
Fairbanks, at 65°N, is the largest city in interior Alaska — and the launching point for almost all road travel further north.
Northwest Territories, Canada · pop. 19,234
Yellowknife sits at 62°N on the shore of Great Slave Lake — close enough to the Arctic Circle to deliver world-class auroras.
Nunavut, Canada · pop. 7,740
Iqaluit, Nunavut's capital on Baffin Island, sits at 63°N — one of North America's smallest and most remote capitals.
Troms, Norway · pop. 43,368
Tromsø, the 'gateway to the Arctic', has been a launching point for polar expeditions since the 19th century.
Murmansk Oblast, Russia · pop. 266,681
Murmansk is the largest city anywhere above the Arctic Circle, with about 270,000 residents and a year-round ice-free port.
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For entertainment only. Rankings on this page are editorial picks compiled from public sources for fun and discovery — they aren't a scientific measurement. Population figures and place details come from open data; see the linked place pages for sources.