text: how many people does it take to make a town become a city?   what is the difference between a city and a town?  in the united states, an incorporated city is a legally defined government entity, with powers delegated by the state and county and created and approved by the voters of the city. it can provide local government services to its citizens.  in most places in the u.s. a town, village, community, or neighborhood is simply an unincorporated community with no governmental powers. usually, county governments provide services to these unincorporated communities. some states do have official designations of "towns" that include limited powers.  generally in the urban heirarchy, villages are smaller than towns and towns are smaller than cities but each country has its own definition of a city and an urban area.