The city of Suzhou, Jiangsu province, now has 6.5 million permanent residents, at least as of the end of 2013, which puts it in the megacity category, according to a recent State Council decision on the megacity definition.

In fact, when rural people are factored in, the city’s population had already reached 11.77 million by 2010, based on the 6th National Population Census. Of that amount, 10.46 million were permanent residents.

One survey, last year, showed Suzhou with a permanent urban population of 2.41 million, and a "floating" population of 3.06 million, meaning those living in the city for over six months.

The official megacity definition is that a city should have a permanent urban population of 5 - 10 million. [Photo/Suzhou Tourism Bureau]