The city drives the Cincinnati–Middletown–Wilmington combined statistical area, which had a population of 2,172,191 in the 2010 census. With a population of 298,800, Cincinnati is the third-largest city proper in Ohio and the 65th-biggest in the United States. It is the fastest growing economic power in the Midwestern United States and the 28th-biggest metropolitan statistical area in the United States. Cincinnati is also within one day's drive of two-thirds of the United States populace.

In the nineteenth century, Cincinnati was an American boomtown in the heart of the country; it rivaled the larger coastal cities in size and wealth. Throughout much of the 19th century, it was listed among the top 10 U.S. cities by population, surpassed only by New Orleans and the older, established settlements of the United States eastern seaboard; and sixth-biggest city for a period spanning reports from 1840 until 1860. As Cincinnati was the first city founded after the American Revolution as well as the first major inland city in the country, it is thought of as the first purely "American" city.

Cincinnati developed with fewer European immigrants or influence than eastern cities attracted in the same period; however, it received a significant number of German immigrants, who founded many of the city's cultural institutions. By the end of the 19th century, with the shift from steamboats to railroads drawing off freight shipping, trade patterns had altered and Cincinnati's growth slowed considerably. The city was surpassed in population by other inland cities, particularly Chicago, which developed based on commodity exploitation and the railroads, and St. Louis, for decades after the Civil War the gateway to westward migration.

Cincinnati is home to two major sports clubs, the Cincinnati Reds, the oldest team in Major League Baseball, and the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League. The University of Cincinnati, founded in 1819, is one of the 50 largest in the United States. Cincinnati is known for its historic architecture. In the late 1800s, Cincinnati was commonly referred to as "Paris of America", due mainly to such ambitious architectural projects as the Music Hall, Cincinnatian Hotel, and Shillito Department Store. Cincinnati is also the birthplace of William Howard Taft, the 27th President of the United States.