As of the U.S. Census on April 1, 2000, Bartlett, with a population of 40,543, was the 12th largest city in Tennessee (2nd in Shelby County, after Memphis).
The ranking is as follows (with Shelby County cities in Blue):
| Rank | City | Population |
|---|
| 1 | Memphis | 650,100 |
| 2 | Nashville-Davidson | 569,891 |
| 3 | Knoxville | 173,890 |
| 4 | Chattanooga | 155,554 |
| 5 | Clarksville | 103,455 |
| 6 | Murfreesboro | 68,816 |
| 7 | Jackson | 59,643 |
| 8 | Johnson City | 55,469 |
| 9 | Kingsport | 44,905 |
| 10 | Franklin | 41,842 |
| 11 | Hendersonville | 40,620 |
| 12 | Bartlett | 40,543 |
| 13 | Germantown | 37,348 |
| 14 | Cleveland | 37,192 |
| 15 | Columbia | 33,055 |
| 16 | Collierville | 31,872 |
N/A
| Millington | 10,433 |
| N/A | Lakeland | 6,862 |
| N/A | Arlington | 2,569 |