Cologne is one of the five governmental districts of the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia.

It is located in the south-west of that state and covers the hills of the Eifel as well as the Bergisches Land.

It was created on 30 April 1815, as district of the province of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, when Prussia reorganised its internal administration.

The Gross domestic product (GDP) of the region was 190.8 billion € in 2018, accounting for 5.7% of German economic output.

GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 39,300 € or 130% of the EU27 average in the same year.