The Metropolitan City of Genoa (Italian: città metropolitana di Genova) is a metropolitan city in the region of Liguria in northern Italy. Its capital is the city of Genoa. It replaced the province of Genoa in 2015. It has a population of 820,691 in an area of 1,833.79 square kilometres (708.03 mi2) across its 67 municipalities.
Contents
History
It was first created by the reform of local authorities (Law 142/1990) and then established by the Law 56/2014. It has been operative since 1 January 2015. With the establishment of the Republic of Genoa in the 11th century, the whole territory subjected to it was divided into underlying local podesterias. At the same time, in some areas of the Genoese territory, the creation of lordships, subjected or, in other cases, even semi-independent from Genoa, were administered by the various noble families of the time; among these the Fieschi, the Spinola, the Doria and the Malaspina, among the best known. Administrative and jurisdictional divisions of the territory which on several occasions also led to clashes between cities, sometimes even neighboring ones, in favor or against the domination of "La Superba".
The history of the provincial territory remained almost tied to the historical facts that affected the Genoese republic, until its end in 1797. In 1800, Napoleon became Emperor and King of Italy, and it became part of the French Empire. When Napoleon was defeated in 1814, it became part of the Kingdom of Sardinia. At that time Genoa was the most important port and trading center in Italy.
The Metropolitan City of Genoa was established in 1859 by decree and was established on 1 March 1860. The first chairman was Antonio Caveri, a lawyer. It was subdivided into five districts, Levante, Chiavari, Genoa, Savona, and Albenga, which largely corresponded to previous divisions of the Republic of Genoa, which had broken up after Napoleon's Italian campaign. King Victor Emmanuel II approved the Metropolitan City's coat of arms in 1875 and they were amended in 1933 by the Fascist government by the addition of fasces.
Government
The Metropolitan City is headed by the Metropolitan Mayor (Italian: Sindaco metropolitano) and by the Metropolitan Council (Italian: Consiglio metropolitano).
Municipalities
The metropolitan city has 67 municipalities:
Demographics
As of 2026, the population is 820,691, of which 48.4% are male, and 51.6% are female. Minors make up 12.8% of the population, and seniors make up 29.5%.
Immigration
As of 2025, immigrants make up 14.0% of the population. The 5 largest foreign countries of birth are Ecuador, Albania, Morocco, Romania, and Bangladesh.
Transport
Motorways
The Metropolitan City is crossed by the following motorways (in Italian, autostrade):
Autostrada A7: Milan-Genoa
Autostrada A10: Genoa-Ventimiglia
Autostrada A12: Genoa-Rome
Autostrada A26: Genoa-Gravellona Toce
Railway lines
Turin–Genoa railway
Genoa–Ventimiglia railway
Genoa–Pisa railway