The city hall with its striking facade is one of the landmarks of Berlin. The name "red city hall" is a playful reference to the building material of the red bricks. Between 1861 and 1869, the red city hall was built according to plans drawn up by Hermann Waesemann. The neo-Renaissance building with rounded arches was built along with three courtyards. A 74 metre tall tower crowns the brick ensemble.

During the Second World War, the city hall was severely damaged but was soon reconstructed in the immediate years after the war. Following the logic of the division of Berlin, the East Berlin magistrate was held in the red city hall, while the West Berlin Senate convened on the other side of the wall in Rathaus Schöneberg. Since 1991, the red city hall has been serving as a common seat of government, where the mayor also works.

In the city hall, there are several rooms well worth visiting: the Hall of Arms (with all the Berlin district coat of arms) is where important guests of the city are received, the Grand Ballroom is used for events such as receptions and ceremonies, the most beautiful hall is the nine-meter-high Pillar Hall with its orange-coloured, groined ceiling containing many busts. A library was once housed there and today it is often used to host exhibitions. In the corridors of the third floor, portraits of all the honourary citizens of Berlin can be found, which were drawn by Rolf Dübner.