The settlement was founded around the Sázava Monastery, established in 1032 and destroyed in the Hussite Wars in 1421.

[3] The first written mention of the village near the monastery called Černé Budy, which is the oldest part of the town, is from 1053.

The eastern side of the town, on the left bank of the Sázava River, has a predominantly industrial character.

[7] The town is located on the railway line from Prague to Ledeč nad Sázavou and is served by four train stations.

[3] Sázava has appeared under the name Sasau as one of the accessible towns in the 2018 video game Kingdom Come: Deliverance.