Metro East

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St. Louis Metro East
Region
Interactive Map of St. Louis–St. Charles– Farmington, MO–IL CSA St. Louis, MO–IL MSA   City of St. Louis   Greater St. Louis (Missouri)   Metro East (Illinois) Other Statistical Areas in the St. Louis CSA   Farmington, MO μSA   Centralia, IL μSA
Country	United States
State	Illinois
Largest city	Belleville, IL
Other cities	- O'Fallon, IL  - Granite City, IL  - Edwardsville, IL  - Alton, IL  - East St. Louis, IL
Elevation	142–390 m (466–1,280 ft)
Population  (2020)
• Total	681,678
Time zone	UTC−6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Area code(s)	217, 314, 447, 557, 573, 618, 636, 730

The Metro East is an urban area in Southern Illinois, United States that contains the eastern and northern urban, suburban, and exurban areas on the Mississippi River in Greater St Louis. It encompasses eight Illinois counties and constitutes the second-most populous metropolitan area in Illinois.

A historically significant region, the area included the mound building native culture of Cahokia, and the later French settlements of the Illinois Country. It also includes the fertile lands of the riparian American Bottom. The region has almost 700,000 residents and its most populated city is Belleville, with 42,404 residents.^[1] The area hosts several colleges and universities, with Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville as the largest. Also located in Metro East is Scott Air Force Base.