Gainesville is the largest city and county seat of Alachua County, Florida.. Gainesville is primarily known for being home to the University of Florida, the largest university of the State University System of Florida and the third-largest university in the United States. Santa Fe Community College, one of the nation's largest community colleges, is also located in Gainesville. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 127.2 km² (49.1 mi²). 124.8 km² (48.2 mi²) of it is land and 2.4 km² (0.9 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.87% water.

As of the census of 2000, there are 95,447 people living within the city limits, 37,279 households, and 18,341 families residing in the city. The population of the metropolitan area as of the census of 2000 was 217,955. The population density is 764.9/km² (1,981.0/mi²). There are 40,105 housing units at an average density of 321.4/km² (832.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 68.36% White, 23.24% African American, 0.25% Native American, 4.49% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.46% from other races, and 2.18% from two or more races. 6.40% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.