An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province).

In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states the German Confederation and the German Empire, so-called "free imperial cities" (nominative singular freie Reichsstadt, nominative plural freie Reichsstädte) held the legal status of imperial immediacy, according to which they were not subinfeudated to any vassal ruler and were instead subject to the authority of the Emperor alone. Examples included Hamburg, Bremen, and Lübeck, along with others that gained and/or lost the privileges of immediacy over the course of the Empire's history.

A number of countries have made their national capitals into separate entities.

In countries with a federal structure, the federal capital is often separate from other jurisdictions in the country, and frequently has a unique system of government.

Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia, has held the designation of chartered city since 1991, when it was separated from the former province of Shewa. It shares this status with one other city, Dire Dawa.

Bamako, the capital of Mali, is contained within the Bamako Capital District.

Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, is its own district with provincial status surrounded by the Province of Maputo.

Niger's capital, Niamey, comprises a capital district of Niger. It is surrounded by the Tillabéri Department.