Nicotera (Calabrian: Nicòtra; Ancient Greek: Νικόπτερα, romanized: Nikóptera) is a comune (municipality) in the province of Vibo Valentia, Calabria, southern Italy.

The origins of Nicòtera lie with the ancient Greek city of Medma, which was founded by the Locresis of Locri Epizephyrii.

[3] In 1065 Robert Guiscard – enlarging his Principate of Salerno – seized it from the Byzantine Empire, and the town grew around the castle and the cathedral built under the Normans.

In 1282, the naval Battle of Nicotera took place off the coast of the town between the fleets of Angevin Naples and the Kingdom of Aragon.

After the restoration of Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, Nicotera continued to be the chief town of the district, with what are now the modern communes of Joppolo and Limbadi as its dependencies.