[1][2] Fifteen teams were invited by the race organizers to participate in the 1957 edition of the Giro d'Italia.

[3] Each team sent a squad of ten riders, which meant that the race started with a peloton of 150 cyclists.

[4] The teams entering the race were:[3][5] Reigning champion Charly Gaul was seen as a favorite to repeat as winner.

The leader of the general classification – calculated by adding the stage finish times of each rider – wore a pink jersey.

In this ranking, points were won by reaching the summit of a climb ahead of other cyclists.