Importance Placement of productive forces in the space at the present stage is a subject of active research. It is determined by the growing differentiation of socio-economic status of cities. Objectives The study aims to explore the dynamics of inequality of Russian cities within federal districts and the entire country, to confirm or refute the hypothesis about dependence of average monthly salary in cities on the level of urbanization in the region. Methods In the study, I employ the Zipf law, Gini coefficient, and comparative analysis. To test the hypothesis, I use the least square method. Results The Ural Federal District is a leader in terms of the rate of urban population growth (2003–2014), intensive depopulation is observed in the Far Eastern Federal District. The growth of urban inequality in terms of population in 2004–2014 is revealed in the Northwestern, Ural and Siberian Federal district. The Central Federal District demonstrates the growth of urban inequality in terms of the volume of own production of goods and services, investment in fixed capital, and density of population. Conclusions In Russia, capital and major cities attract the population of regions. High values of certain indicators and the growth of urban inequality are observed in the Central Federal District. The findings may be useful for creating the methodological tools to design mechanisms of smoothing the interregional disparities, programs for socio-economic development of cities.
Keywords: city, inequality, estimation
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