The Charlotte metropolitan area (also referred to informally as Metrolina and to a lesser extent as Greater Charlotte) is a metropolitan area of the U.S. states of North and South Carolina, containing the city of Charlotte, North Carolina. The metropolitan area also includes the cities of Gastonia, Concord, Huntersville, and Rock Hill as well as the large suburban area in the counties surrounding Mecklenburg County, which is at the center of the metro area. Located in the Piedmont, it is the largest metropolitan area in the Carolinas, and the fourth largest in the Southeastern United States. The Charlotte metropolitan area is one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the United States.
There are two official metropolitan boundaries for the Charlotte metropolitan area: Charlotte–Concord–Gastonia, NC–SC Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) and Charlotte–Concord, NC–SC Combined Statistical Area (CSA), the latter of which additionally including Hickory–Lenoir–Morganton metropolitan area (MSA) and three micropolitan areas: Marion, Shelby and Albemarle.