Berlin is Germany's capital and largest city, and one of its sixteen constituent states. With a population of around 3.7 million, Berlin is the most densely populated city proper and the sixth most densely populated urban area in the EU. Located in northeastern Germany on the banks of the Spree and Havel rivers, it is the center of the metropolitan area of Berlin-Brandenburg, which has around 6 million inhabitants from over 180 nations. Berlin is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate, owing to its position in the European Plain. Around one third of the city's territory consists of gardens, rivers, canals, woods, parks, and lakes.

It is home to world-class entertainment centers, famous universities, orchestras, museums and hosts various sports events. Its urban location has made it a popular venue for foreign film productions. The city is well known for its contemporary arts, festivals, diverse architecture, nightlife and a high quality of living. Since the 2000s a cosmopolitan entrepreneurial scene has arisen in Berlin. Berlin is a city with politics, culture, the media and science around the world. Its economy is focused on high-tech companies and the service sector, encompassing a range of innovative media firms, markets, testing facilities, and conference venues. Berlin acts as a European gateway for air and rail transport, and has a highly complex network of public transport. The metropolitan area is a popular destination for tourists. IT, clean tech, biotechnology, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, biomedical engineering and electronics are also significant sectors.

Many German and foreign companies in the city have company or service centers. Berlin has been known as a major hub for business founders for many years. Investment Bank Berlin and Landesbank Berlin are the two largest banks with head office in the capital. Daimler makes cars, and BMW manufactures motorcycles in Berlin. The city's main pharmaceutical firms are the Bayer Health Care and Berlin Chemie. There, too, is the second-largest German airline Air Berlin.

In 2014, Berlin reported 28.7 million hotel stays over night and 11.9 million hotel guests. In the last ten years, tourism figures have more than doubled and Berlin has become Europe's third-most-visited city destination. The largest groups of tourists come from Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain and the United States. Berlin was the largest organizer of conferences in the world holding 195 international meetings according to statistics from the International Congress and Convention Association in 2015. Any of these congress activities are held at venues such as the Berlin Congress Center (bcc) or City Cube Berlin.

Berlin is an important center of film industry in Europe and Germany. It is home to more than 1,000 film and TV production companies, 270 film theaters, and every year around 300 national and international co-productions are filmed in the region.