RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's population reached 208,494,900 people as of July 1, the country's statistics agency IBGE announced on Wednesday.

According to the IBGE, the figure increased 0.82 percent compared to 2017.

Out of 5,570 towns in Brazil, Sao Paulo continues to be the most populated city with 12.2 million inhabitants, followed by Rio de Janeiro, with 6.7 million inhabitants; the country's capital, Brasilia, ranked third, with 2.97 million inhabitants.

On the other hand, Serra da Saudade, in Minas Gerais state, has the smallest population of 786 people, followed by Bora, in Sao Paulo state (836 inhabitants) and Araguainha, in Mato Grosso state (956 inhabitants).

Brazil is a highly urban country as 57 percent of the population or 118.9 million people live in only 317 towns with a total population over 100,000. Up to 17 cities have a population above 1 million people, and they have, together, 45.7 million inhabitants, 21.9 percent of the total population.

The southeastern region continues to be the most populated in Brazil, holding the three most populated states -- Sao Paulo state is in the lead, with 45.5 million inhabitants -- 21.8 percent of the Brazilian population. Roraima state, in the northern region, has the smallest population of the 27 states, with 576,600 inhabitants, which represent 0.3 percent of the country's population.