Chūō (中央区, Chūō-ku) is one of 9 wards of Kobe, Japan.

It has an area of 28.46 km2, and a population of 127,602 with 74,814 households as of January 31, 2012.

The ward was formed from the 1980 merger of the former Fukiai-ku (葺合区) and Ikuta-ku (生田区).

The Consulate-General of Panama in Kobe is located on the eighth floor of the Moriyama Building in Chūō-ku.

[1] Also in the ward are the headquarters of Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Sysmex Corporation, a global medical devices manufacturing company and TOA Corporation, an electronics company.