Moscow is the most northern city on Earth to have a population above 10,000,000, the most populous city on the continent of Europe, and the seventh largest city proper in the world. Its population, according to the preliminary results of the 2010 census, is 11,514,330. Based on Forbes 2011, Moscow had 79 billionaires, displacing New York as the city with the greatest number of billionaires.

Moscow is situated on the banks of the Moskva River, which flows for just over 500 km through the East European Plain in central Russia. 49 bridges span the river and its canals within the city's limits. Elevation of Moscow at the All-Russia Exhibition Centre (VVC), where the head Moscow weather station is situated, is 156 m (512 ft). The highest point is Teplostanskaya highland at 255 m (837 ft). The width of Moscow city from west to east is 39.7 km (24.7 mi), and the length from north to south is 51.7 km (32.1 mi).

Typical high temperatures in the warm months of June, July and August are around 23 °C (73 °F), but during heat waves (which can occur between May and September), daytime high temperatures often top 30 °C (86 °F)—sometimes for a week or a two at a time. In the winter, temperatures normally drop to approximately −10 °C (14 °F), though there can be periods of warmth with temperatures rising above 0 °C (32 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded was 38.2 °C (100.8 °F) at the VVC weather station and 39.0 °C (102.2 °F) in the center of Moscow and Domodedovo airport on  July 29, 2010 during the unusual 2010 Northern Hemisphere summer heat wave. At the new averages 1981–2010 mean temperature of July is 19.2 °C (66.6 °F). The lowest ever recorded was −42.2 °C (−44.0 °F) in January 1940. Snow cover (present for 3–5 months a year) typically begins at the end of November and melts by mid-March.

Moscow is one of largest city economies in Europe and it comprises approximately 22% of Russian GDP. As of 2009 Moscow economy reached 7.16 trl roubles ($225 bln).

Moscow has the lowest unemployment rate of all federal subjects of Russia, standing at just 1% in 2010, compared to the national average of 7%. The average monthly wage in the city is 41,600 roubles (€1,070), which is almost twice the national average of 21,800 rubles (€560), and the fourth highest among the federal subjects of Russia.

Due to the current economic situation, the price of real estate in Moscow continues to rise. Today, one could expect to pay US$4000 in average per square meter (11 sq ft) in the outskirts of the city or US$6,500–$8,000 per square meter in a prestigious district. The price sometimes may exceed US$40,000 per square meter in a flat. It costs about US$2500 per month to rent a 1-bedroom apartment and about US$1500 per month for a studio in the center of Moscow.

There are 1696 high schools in Moscow, as well as 91 colleges. Besides these, there are 222 institutions offering higher education in Moscow, including 60 state universities and the Lomonosov Moscow State University, which was founded in 1755. The university main building located in Vorobyovy Gory (Sparrow Hills) is 240 metres (790 ft) tall and when completed, was the tallest building outside the United States. The university has over 30,000 undergraduate and 7,000 postgraduate students, who have a choice of twenty-nine faculties and 450 departments for study.

There are 452 libraries in the city, including 168 for children. The Russian State Library, founded in 1862 is the national library of Russia. The Russian State Library is home to over 275 kilometres of shelves and forty-two million items, including over seventeen million books and serial volumes, thirteen million journals, 350,000 music scores and sound records, and 150,000 maps, making it the largest library in Russia and one of the largest in the world. Items in 247 different languages comprise approximately twenty-nine percent of the collection.

The Moscow Metro has standard Russian gauge, 1520 mm, and third rail supply. The average distance between stations is 1760 m (!), the shortest with 500 m is between Vystavochnaya and Mezhdunarodnaya (Line 4), and the longest with 6.6 km between Krylatskoye and Strogino (Line 3) . At 86 m below the surface, Park Pobedy is among the deepest stations in the world.

Moscow has an extensive tram system, which first opened in 1899. The newest line was built in 1984. Its daily usage by Muscovites is low, approximately 5% of trips.