Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022.^[7] It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area with a population of 350,903 in 2022.^[7]

Gainesville is home to the University of Florida, the fourth-largest public university campus by enrollment in the United States as of the 2021–2022 academic year. The university is represented by the Florida Gators sports teams in NCAA competitions.