Limerick City and County was divided into 6 local electoral areas (LEAs) to elect 40 councillors for a five-year term of office on the electoral system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote (PR-STV).

The election was held alongside a plebiscite under the Local Government Act 2019 on whether or not Limerick City and County would establish the position of a directly elected mayor for the council.

[3][4][5] It was one of three areas to hold such a plebiscite, and the only one where the proposition passed.

[6] It was implemented by the Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2024.

Following the recommendations of the 2018 boundary review committee, significant changes were made to the LEAs in the 2014 elections due to terms of references requiring a maximum of seven councillors in each LEA and changes in population revealed in the 2016 census.