The largest county in Rhode Island

Unusually, Rhode Island gives the same answer on both measures: Providence County is the largest by land area and the most populous.

Largest by land area

Providence County

409.5 sq mi

39.6% of Rhode Island's land

Largest by population

Providence County

678,179 people

60.8% of Rhode Island's population

Sources: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates, released 26 March 2026; US Census Bureau, Gazetteer Files, 2025 Gazetteer Files, released 10 September 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2026.

By land area

The ten largest counties of Rhode Island by land area. Land area excludes inland and coastal water.
RankNameLand areaPopulation
1Providence County409.5 sq mi678,179
2Washington County329.3 sq mi129,795
3Kent County168.6 sq mi173,495
4Newport County102.4 sq mi83,051
5Bristol County24.1 sq mi50,001

By population

The ten most populous counties of Rhode Island, from the Census Bureau's Vintage 2025 estimates.
RankNamePopulationDensity
1Providence County678,1791,656 per sq mi
2Kent County173,4951,029 per sq mi
3Washington County129,795394 per sq mi
4Newport County83,051811 per sq mi
5Bristol County50,0012,072 per sq mi

And the smallest

Smallest by land area

Bristol County

24.1 sq mi

Least populous

Bristol County

50,001 people

More on Rhode Island

Rebuilt from source data 30 August 2026. How these figures are produced.