Cotia is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo.^[2] The population is 253,608 (2020 est.) in an area of 323.99 km².^[3] The city is at an elevation of 853 m. Cotia is linked with the Rodovia Raposo Tavares highway.

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Cotia
View of the historic center of Cotia
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Location in the state of São Paulo and Brazil
Cotia
Coordinates: 23°36′15″S 46°55′10″W
Country	Brazil
Region	Southeast
State	São Paulo
Founded	April 2, 1856
Government
• Mayor	Rogério Franco (PSD)
Area
• Total	323.99 km2 (125.09 sq mi)
Elevation	853 m (2,799 ft)
Population  (2020 [1])
• Total	253,608
• Density	780/km2 (2,000/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC-3 (UTC-3)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-2 (UTC-2)
Website	Prefeitura Municipal de Cotia

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Cotia was founded in 1580, and was an active village during the "bandeiras" expeditions. In 1626, Raposo Tavares and his companions arrived in the city. The "Sítio do Mandú" and "Sítio do Padre Inácio" (Mandu's Ranch and Priest Inácio's Ranch) were some of the first rural houses to be built there. Nowadays, they are preserved by the "Instituto Brasileiro de Patrimônio Cultural. Cotia was declared an independent municipality on April 2, 1856. According to the 1980 demographic census, the city had a population of over 62 thousand people.

The city is located west of São Paulo, and has a terrain made of valleys and mountains, reaching a maximum elevation of 1,074 meters above sea level ^[4]

The city has the Cotia River as its main river.

The city has a densely populated urban area, but the less developed areas to the west attract people interested in ecotourism. The only naturally occurring case of Brazilian hemorrhagic fever took place here.

• Granja Viana, a district of Cotia