City had to wait until nearest rivals Liverpool had drawn with third-placed Chelsea in Saturday’s late game to discover whether their stay at the summit would be a brief one, but Pep Guardiola’s side ended the day top on goal difference.
The outcome of this match was never in doubt once Sterling broke the deadlock after 29 minutes, sliding home Leroy Sane’s cross after a swift counter-attack opened up the Seagulls defence for the first time.
The defending champions continued to dominate and Aguero made sure of the points on 65 minutes, firing home from a Sterling pass to finish a move he started.
City had 28 attempts at goal, while the visitors had just four.
And while Seagulls keeper Mat Ryan was kept busy throughout, the only action Ederson saw in the City goal was to comfortably collect an early looping header by Shane Duffy.
This was exactly the kind of emphatic win Guardiola will have wanted before his side attempt to get their Champions League campaign back on track against Hoffenheim this week.
City, surprisingly beaten at home by French side Lyon in their last home game, never looked like suffering a similar upset against the Seagulls.
Their Premier League record at the Etihad since the start of last season includes 20 wins from 23 games, and this was among the most convincing.
True, it took them time to find a way to break down a well-drilled Brighton side, but they had so much of the ball they always appeared in control.
City enjoyed 80% of possession and played 851 passes, compared to 210 by a Brighton side who sat deep and offered next to no threat on the counter-attack.
