Borba is located on the banks of the Madeira River around 150 km (93 mi) south of Manaus.

The municipality contains 46% of the 283,117 hectares (699,600 acres) Rio Madeira Sustainable Development Reserve, created in 2006.

[6] Borba also contains about 60% of the 896,411 hectares (2,215,080 acres) Acari National Park created by president Dilma Rousseff in 2016 in the last week before her provisional removal from office.

[7] Founded in 1728 as the Jesuit mission Aldea Trocano by Portuguese Padre João Sampaio.

In 1755, it became the first vila (Portuguese town) in what was then the new captaincy of Rio Negro, named Borba.