It is south of the main train station (Stazioni Termini) of Rome, near the Oppian Hill.
The street connects two major papal basilicas: the Santa Maria Maggiore to the St John Lateran.
At the intersection with the Roman Via Labicana is the facade of the ancient church of Santi Marcellino e Pietro al Laterano.
Other institutions on the route include the Museo Nazionale d'Arte Orientale and the Pontifical University Antonianum.
The street is included in the crime novel That Awful Mess on Via Merulana by the Italian writer Carlo Emilio Gadda.