It was created in 1992 through the fusion of three geographical areas which had previously been part of the province of Novara.

The area flanking the western shore of Verbano (or Lago Maggiore) forms the eastern part of the province; Cusio (or Lago d’Orta) and its environs form the southern part; while the north and west of the province consist of the Ossola, a region of Alpine mountains and valleys.

The province has a total population of some 160,000, distributed over an area of 2,255 square kilometres (871 sq mi), with the biggest population centres being its capital Verbania on the shores of Lago Maggiore, Domodossola the main town of the Ossola, and Omegna at the northern end of Lago d’Orta.

[1] The largest by population are: The full list is: The top eight countries of origin of the inhabitants of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola with foreign citizenship at 31 December 2010 were:[2] In 2003, the Sacred Mountain of Domodossola and the Sacred Mountain of Ghiffa were inserted by UNESCO in the World Heritage List.

Common in the whole Insubria area are bruscitti, originating from Alto Milanese, which consist in a braised meat dish cut very thin and cooked in wine and fennel seeds, historically obtained by stripping leftover meat.