Gallarate railway station is situated at Piazza Giovanni XXIII, on the southeastern edge of the city centre.

[1] On 24 July 1865, the next section of the Rho–Arona railway, from Gallarate to Sesto Calende, went into operation.

[1] Two months later, on 26 September 1865, Gallarate became a junction station, for the newly opened Gallarate–Varese railway.

[1] On 17 March 1884, another secondary line, the Gallarate–Laveno railway, commenced operations into Gallarate.

The station is also served by two pairs of EuroCity trains providing connections between Milan and either Geneva or Basel.