Formerly part of the ancient Greek colonies of the Magna Graecia, the municipal area used to host strategic Roman settlements during the late Republican-early Imperial times, like most of the southern Tyrrhenian coast.

[4] Battipaglia as a definite township was formally created by Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies in 1858, as the Bourbon authorities designated the place as the site of an agricultural colony where families who had survived the 1857 Basilicata earthquake could be rehoused.

It was eventually granted the status of independent municipality by a Royal Decree on 28 March 1929 (during the Mussolini Cabinet), comprising parts of the territories which had been previously included in the nearby towns of Eboli and Montecorvino Rovella.

[7] In 1969, due to the scheduled shutdown of two large sugar and tobacco processing factories – both employing a significant number of locals – thousands of Battipagliesi carried out widespread riots, which would be calmed down few days later following the Italian government's commitment to keep both operational.

Among the most significant companies which established factories in Battipaglia are: Bonduelle (food), Sivam (animal husbandry), Cooper Standard Automotive (car parts), Nexans (electric cables), and Deriblok (packaging).

The big town market, whose atmosphere recalls an amusement park where traders can display their wares, lasts from Saturday to Monday, usually ending with a music exhibition in the central Piazza Amendola.