# Provinces of Ecuador

Ecuador is divided into 24 provinces (Spanish: provincias, singular – provincia). The provinces of Ecuador and their capitals are:

## List

| Map key | Province | Capital | Largest City | Population (2022 census) | Area (km$^2$) | Established |
| 1 | Azuay | Cuenca | Cuenca | 801,609 | 8,189 | 1824 |
| 2 | Bolívar | Guaranda | Guaranda | 199,078 | 4,148 | 1884 |
| 3 | Cañar | Azogues | La Troncal | 227,578 | 3,669 | 1880 |
| 4 | Carchi | Tulcán | Tulcán | 172,828 | 3,790 | 1880 |
| 5 | Chimborazo | Riobamba | Riobamba | 471,933 | 5,999 | 1824 |
| 6 | Cotopaxi | Latacunga | Latacunga | 470,210 | 6,085 | 1851 |
| 7 | El Oro | Machala | Machala | 714,592 | 5,879 | 1884 |
| 8 | Esmeraldas | Esmeraldas | Esmeraldas | 553,900 | 16,132 | 1847 |
| 9 | Galápagos | Puerto Baquerizo Moreno | Puerto Ayora | 28,583 | 8,010 | 1973 |
| 10 | Guayas | Guayaquil | Guayaquil | 4,391,923 | 15,927 | 1824 |
| 11 | Imbabura | Ibarra | Ibarra | 469,879 | 4,611 | 1824 |
| 12 | Loja | Loja | Loja | 485,421 | 11,100 | 1824 |
| 13 | Los Ríos | Babahoyo | Quevedo | 898,652 | 7,100 | 1860 |
| 14 | Manabí | Portoviejo | Manta | 1,592,840 | 19,427 | 1824 |
| 15 | Morona Santiago | Macas | Macas | 192,508 | 25,690 | 1954 |
| 16 | Napo | Tena | Tena | 131,675 | 12,476 | 1959 |
| 17 | Orellana | Puerto Francisco de Orellana | Puerto Francisco de Orellana | 182,166 | 21,691 | 1998 |
| 18 | Pastaza | Puyo | Puyo | 111,915 | 29,068 | 1959 |
| 19 | Pichincha | Quito | Quito | 3,089,473 | 9,692 | 1824 |
| 20 | Santa Elena | Santa Elena | La Libertad | 385,735 | 3,696 | 2007 |
| 21 | Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas | Santo Domingo | Santo Domingo | 492,969 | 4,180 | 2007 |
| 22 | Sucumbíos | Nueva Loja | Nueva Loja | 199,014 | 18,612 | 1989 |
| 23 | Tungurahua | Ambato | Ambato | 563,532 | 3,222 | 1860 |
| 24 | Zamora Chinchipe | Zamora | Zamora | 110,973 | 10,556 | 1953 |
| Total | Ecuador | Quito | Guayaquil | 16,938,986 | 283,561 square kilometres (109,484 sq mi) | |
$^1$ Population as per the census carried out on 2022-10-01
In addition, there were four areas that were non-delimited. These locations were:
* Las Golondrinas: In a referendum held on April 3, 2016, 56.9% of voters voted in favor of Las Golondrinas being incorporated into the Imbabura Province.
* La Manga del Cura: In a referendum held on September 27, 2015, 64.2% of the voters voted in favor of La Manga del Cura being incorporated into the Manabí Province.
* El Piedrero: incorporated into Guayas Province by the Presidential decree in 2017.
* Matilde Esther: incorporated into Guayas Province by the Presidential decree in 2017

### Regions and planning areas

Regionalization, or zoning, is the union of two or more adjoining provinces in order to decentralize the administrative functions of the capital, Quito. In Ecuador, there are seven regions, or zones, each shaped by the following provinces:
* Region 1 (42,126 km$^2$, or 16,265 mi$^2$): Esmeraldas, Carchi, Imbabura, and Sucumbíos. Administrative city: Ibarra
* Region 2 (43,498 km$^2$, or 16,795 mi$^2$): Pichincha, Napo, and Orellana. Administrative city: Tena
* Region 3 (44,710 km$^2$, or 17,263 mi$^2$): Chimborazo, Tungurahua, Pastaza, and Cotopaxi. Administrative city: Riobamba
* Region 4 (22,257 km$^2$, or 8,594 mi$^2$): Manabí and Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas. Administrative city: Ciudad Alfaro
* Region 5 (38,420 km$^2$, or 14,834 mi$^2$): Santa Elena, Guayas, Los Ríos, Galápagos, and Bolívar. Administrative city: Milagro
* Region 6 (38,237 km$^2$, or 14,763 mi$^2$): Cañar, Azuay, and Morona Santiago. Administrative city: Cuenca
* Region 7 (27,571 km$^2$, or 10,645 mi$^2$): El Oro, Loja, and Zamora Chinchipe. Administrative city: Loja
Quito and Guayaquil are Metropolitan Districts. Galápagos, despite being included within Region 5, is also under a special unit.