Belo Horizonte is the capital city of the state of Minas Gerais, which is the second-most populous state in Brazil. Located in the Minas Gerais region, it serves as the anchor for a major metropolitan area that ranks as the third most populous in the country.
The city is recognized as the first planned modern city in Brazil. It is currently the sixth-largest city in Brazil with a population of approximately 2.4 million people. On a continental scale, it ranks as the 13th-largest city in South America and the 18th-largest in the Americas.