The St. Petersburg metropolitan area is complex. St. Petersburg is the largest city in Florida’s most densely populated county – Pinellas – with nearly one million inhabitants. There are 24 municipalities in the county, ranging from the larger cities of St. Petersburg and Clearwater to small beach communities and historic hamlets such as Dunedin, Safety Harbor and Tarpon Springs. Pinellas is one of four counties in the Tampa/St. Petersburg MSA, and one of 11 counties in the Neilsen Designated Market Area (DMA), with more households than any market in Florida and No. 2 in the southeast to Atlanta.

With so many municipalities and counties in the mix and challenges of growth management that are common to any Florida community, regionalism is paramount. Communities here share common resources – from transportation to drinking water to cultural assets and economic development.

The St. Petersburg/Tampa economy – if the area was its own nation – would be the world’s 36th largest economy, with a $139.7 billion gross product. It would compare favorably to countries such as Argentina, Isreal, Singapore, Venezuela or the United Arab Emirates. The city's Economic Development Department is actively engaged with the Tampa Bay Partnership, a seven-county partnership that markets the region to businesses worldwide. The Partnership has hosted prominent site selection consultants, participated in trade shows and trade missions, co-opted on national print advertising to save taxpayer money, wielded legislative influence for the region's benefit and designed new out-of-market campaigns.

St. Petersburg actively participates in regional planning, especially through its transportation efforts with the Pinellas County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) policy board and technical advisory committee. Ongoing areas of activity include pedestrian and bicycle facilities, traffic signal and median control, intelligent transportation systems, and fixed guideway transit.

The St. Petersburg metro area MPO activities are coordinated with six other similar organizations in the Tampa Bay region. City representatives also coordinate activities with the Tampa Bay Commuter Rail Authority, the Florida High Speed Rail Authority, the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Association Cultural Arts Task Force, Tampa Bay Water and SWIFTMUD (Southwest Florida Water Management District), the regional planning authority for water resources.