Hamburg is the second-largest city in Germany and ranks sixth in size within the European Union. The city is home to over 1.8 million residents, while the Hamburg metropolitan region (including neighboring parts of the federal states of Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein) has a population exceeding 5 million. Located on the Elbe River, Hamburg's port is the second-largest in Europe (after Rotterdam) and the tenth-largest worldwide.

The city's official name, "Hamburg, the Free and Hanseatic City" (Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg in German), reflects its history as a member of the medieval Hanseatic League and as a free and imperial city within the Holy Roman Empire. Before the unification of Germany in 1871, Hamburg was a sovereign state. Until the constitutional changes of 1919, the city was governed by a bourgeois class based on hereditary principles.

Hamburg is one of the wealthiest cities in Europe. It has been an important financial hub for centuries and is home to one of the world's oldest banks, Berenberg Bank. The city supports over 120,000 businesses.

Hamburg is a major tourist destination for both domestic and international visitors. It was ranked 17th globally in terms of tourist numbers in 2012 and 10th in 2010.

The city is located in the southern part of the Jutland Peninsula, positioned between Europe (to the south) and Scandinavia (to the north). To the west, it borders the North Sea, and to the northeast, the Baltic Sea. Hamburg lies on the Elbe River at its confluence with the Alster and Bille Rivers. In the city center, the Binnenalster ("Inner Alster") and Außenalster ("Outer Alster") lakes were initially formed by damming the Alster River. Neuwerk Island, along with its two smaller neighboring islands, Scharhörn and Nigehörn, located in the Wadden Sea (Hamburg National Park), are also part of Hamburg.