Cape Coral is a city in Lee County, Florida, United States, on the Gulf of Mexico. Founded in 1957, the city's population had grown to 194,016 as of the 2020 census, a 26% increase from 154,309 at the 2010 census, making it the ninth-most populous city in Florida. With an area of 120 square miles, Cape Coral is the largest city between Tampa and Miami in both population and area. It is the largest and principal city in the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.