Opened in 1860, the station is the eastern terminus of the Košice–Žilina railway, which forms part of Slovakia's main east–west rail corridor.

The station is currently owned by Železnice Slovenskej republiky (ŽSR); train services are operated by Železničná spoločnosť Slovensko (ZSSK), RegioJet (RJ) and LEO Express (LE) (since 14 December 2014).

Košice railway station is situated at Staničné námestie, about 1 km (0.62 mi) east of St. Elisabeth Cathedral.

It is near the western bank of the river Hornád, in the borough of Staré Mesto, which forms part of the Košice I district.

The station was opened on 14 August 1860, upon the inauguration of the Miskolc–Košice railway, which linked Košice with Miskolc in present-day Hungary.