Iran features a structured, tiered administrative hierarchy. Understanding how Iran’s territory is divided—from vast provinces down to local rural districts—provides insight into how civic services, local governance, and electoral divisions operate across the nation.
The Four-Tier Administrative Hierarchy
Iran’s administrative system is organized into four main nested tiers: Provinces, Counties, Districts, and Rural Districts / Cities.
Province (Ostan)
└── County (Shahrestan)
└── District (Bakhsh)
├── Rural District (Dehestan)
└── City (Shahr)
1. Province (Ostan / استان)
Count: 31 provinces
Governance: Headed by a Governor-General (Ostandar), who is appointed directly by the Minister of Interior and approved by the cabinet.
Role: Serves as the primary regional unit for budget allocation, development policy, and security administration.
2. County (Shahrestan / شهرستان)
Count: Over 400 counties
Governance: Administered by a Governor (Farmandar).
Role: Counties are created around major population centers or geographic zones. Every county contains a central city acting as the administrative headquarters (Markaz).
3. District (Bakhsh / بخش)
Count: Over 1,000 districts
Governance: Led by a District Governor (Bakhshdar).
Role: The district (bakhsh) is the key sub-divisional unit of a county. A single county typically contains 2 to 5 districts. Each district contains one or more urban centers (Shahr) along with surrounding rural districts (Dehestan).
Rural Districts: Aggregates of multiple adjacent villages, managed locally by rural councils (Shora-ye Eslami-ye Roosta) and village administrators (Dehyar).
Cities / Municipalities: Urban settlements within a district governed by elected Islamic City Councils and appointed Mayors (Shahrdar).
Structure Summary Table
Level
Persian Name
Managed By
Approx. Count
Function
Tier 1
Ostan (استان)
Governor-General (Ostandar)
31
Primary state/provincial government
Tier 2
Shahrestan (شهرستان)
County Governor (Farmandar)
~430
Regional/County administrative center
Tier 3
Bakhsh (بخش)
District Governor (Bakhshdar)
~1,000+
Sub-county district governance
Tier 4a
Dehestan (دهستان)
Village Council / Dehyar
~2,500
Cluster of rural villages
Tier 4b
Shahr (شهر)
Mayor (Shahrdar) & City Council
~1,400
Urban municipality within a district
Municipal Districts vs. Administrative Districts (Bakhsh)
It is common to distinguish between two distinct uses of the word “district” in Iran:
Administrative Districts (Bakhsh): Formal regional subdivisions established by the Ministry of Interior for state governance across counties.
Municipal / Urban Districts (Mantaqeh / منطقه): Intra-city sub-divisions used in major metropolitan areas for urban management.
Tehran: Divided into 22 Municipal Districts (Mantaqeh), which are further subdivided into 352 neighborhood units (Mahalleh).
Isfahan, Mashhad, and Tabriz: Similarly divided into 10 to 15 municipal districts to handle waste management, zoning, parks, and local municipal service delivery.
Regional Groups of Provinces
For macro-planning and inter-provincial cooperation, the 31 provinces are also grouped into 5 administrative regions coordinated from regional hubs:
Region 1 (Tehran Hub): Covers northern and central provinces, including Tehran, Alborz, Mazandaran, Golestan, Qazvin, Qom, and Semnan.
Region 2 (Isfahan Hub): Covers central and southern inland provinces like Isfahan, Fars, Hormozgan, Bushehr, and Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari.
Region 3 (Tabriz Hub): Encompasses northwestern Azerbaijan and Caspian-adjacent provinces like East/West Azerbaijan, Ardabil, Gilan, Zanjan, and Kurdistan.
Region 4 (Kermanshah Hub): Covers western provinces, including Kermanshah, Hamadan, Ilam, Lorestan, Khuzestan, and Markazi.
Region 5 (Mashhad Hub): Covers eastern and southeastern provinces like Razavi Khorasan, North Khorasan, South Khorasan, Kerman, Sistan and Baluchestan, and Yazd.
List of Iran’s Districts
Iran’s second-level administrative divisions are called shahrestans, usually translated as “counties” (or “districts”). Below they are grouped by the 31 provinces, with the numbering restarting for each province.
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