Erie (/ˈɪəri/; EER-ee) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, and Reading, and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania, with a population of 94,831 at the 2020 census. The estimated population in 2021 had decreased to 93,928. The Erie metropolitan area, equivalent to all of Erie County, consists of 266,096 residents. The Erie-Meadville combined statistical area had a population of 369,331 at the 2010 census.