Contagem (Portuguese pronunciation: [kõˈtaʒẽj]) is a city in the center of the state of Minas Gerais, in Brazil.

It is only 21 kilometres (13 miles) from the capital, Belo Horizonte, and forms part of a metropolitan area with a population of 4.8 million.

The city belongs to the metropolitan mesoregion and to the microregion of Belo Horizonte, has a territorial extension of 195.2 square kilometres (75.4 square miles), and borders the municipalities of Ribeirão das Neves, Esmeraldas, Betim, Ibirité and Belo Horizonte.

[3] Serious problems with water and air pollution exist, and the Pampulha Lake (Belo Horizonte) receives large quantities of heavy metals from the city.

The Gafanhoto power plant (on the Pará River) was built by the state government in 1952 to provide for the implementation and development of the district, which is still the largest industrial region in Minas Gerais.