Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area with a population of 350,903 in 2022.
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.
Gainesville is the only city with more than 10,000 residents in the Gainesville, Florida, metropolitan statistical area (Alachua, Levy and Gilchrist counties), and it is surrounded by rural area, including the 21,000-acre (8,500 ha) wilderness of Paynes Prairie on its southern edge. The city is characterized by its medium size and central location, about two hours' driving time from either Jacksonville or Orlando, three hours from Tampa, and six hours from either Atlanta or Miami. The area is dominated by the University of Florida, which in 2008 was the third-largest university by enrollment in the US, and as of 2021 was the fourth-largest.