Allentown's Center City is generally defined as the area centered around Hamilton and 7th Streets, bordered by the Jordan Creek to the east, Martin Luther King Jr. Drive to the south, the city line with Whitehall Township to the north, and 15th Street to the west.

The Allentown Art Museum, Miller Symphony Hall, the former site of Hess's Department Stores' original and flagship store, Baum School of Art, Lehigh County Historical Society and Heritage Museum are Center City landmarks.

An 8,500-capacity indoor arena, PPL Center, opened in August 2014, and is the home arena for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the primary development team of the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League.

Center City Allentown includes four residential neighborhoods: Seventh Street, Downtown, Old Allentown, Old Fairgrounds District, and North of Tilghman Street (NOTI).

Center City is home to the corporate headquarters of PPL Corporation, a New York Stock Exchange-traded company with over 6,500 employees and $7.9 billion in annual revenue as of 2022.