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Hertford is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. In 2006 East Hertfordshire was ranked within the top 10 places to live in the UK following a survey commissioned by the Channel 4 TV station. Forming a civil parish, the 2001 census put the population of Hertford at about 24,180. Recent estimates are that it is now around 28,000. The name is Anglo Saxon and means the ford frequented by harts or stags. The town of Meryton in the Jane Austen novel Pride and Prejudice is thought to have been based on Hertford.

Hertford is at the confluence of four river valleys: the Rib, Beane and Mimram join the River Lea at Hertford to flow south toward the Thames as the Lee Navigation, after Hertford Castle Weir.The shared valley of the Lea and the Beane is called Hartham Common and this provides a large park to one side of the town centre running towards Ware and lying below the ridge upon which Bengeo is situated.

The town centre still follows the medieval layout with many timber-framed buildings hidden under later frontages, particularly in St Andrew Street. Hertford suffers from traffic problems despite the existence of the 1960s A414 bypass called Gascoyne Way which passes close to the town centre. Plans have for long existed to connect the A10 with the A414, by-passing the town completely. Nevertheless, the town retains very much a country-town feel, despite lying only 19.2 miles (30.9 km) north of Central London. This is aided by its proximity to larger towns such as Harlow, Bishop's Stortford and Stevenage where modern development has been focused.

Employment in the town is centred on County Hall (Hertfordshire County Council), Wallfields (East Hertfordshire District Council) and McMullens Brewery, one of a dwindling number of independent brewers in the United Kingdom. Many residents commute to work in London.

In comparison with neighbouring towns Hertford has suffered from the absence of a modern shopping development. However, it has most of the usual supermarkets. A Tesco store occupies part of the former Christ's Hospital Bluecoat Girls School, which closed down in 1985. Sainsburys plans to build a new store on part of the McMullens Brewery site. The local branch of Woolworths closed for good on 27 December 2008, after the collapse of that store chain. There are very few of the usual chain shops found in most high streets and this makes Hertford stand out from other "clone towns". There is a high number of independent shops in the town with a variety of boutiques and salons.

Alfred Russel Wallace who proposed a theory of natural selection at the same time as Charles Darwin lived in Hertford between the ages of five and thirteen and attended Hertford Grammar School. The radical politician John Wilkes was educated in Hertford. Samuel Stone was a 17th century Puritan Minister who established the American town of Hartford, Connecticut (with Thomas Hooker). He was born in July 1602, and lived in Fore Street, Hertford. He was baptised at All Saints Church. Much more recently, the band Deep Purple formed in Hertford in 1968. Harry Potter film star Rupert Grint comes from Hertford, and although he now lives outside the county town, he lived within Hertford when filming began on the Harry Potter series. He attended Richard Hale School before leaving after his GCSE exams in 2004. Other famous students at Richard Hale School are listed on that school's page.

• In the town are the remains of the original Hertford Castle, principally a motte. The castle's gatehouse, the central part of which dates to a rebuild by Edward IV in 1463, is the home to Hertford Town Council. The Motte, from the original Motte and Bailey castle in Hertford, can be found just behind Castle Hall, a short distance from the modern castle.
• There are several churches in the town, All Saints' and St Andrew's, are late and mid 19th century respectively. In the northern suburb of Bengeo lies St Leonard's, a two-celled Norman church of considerable architectural interest.
• In Railway Street can be found the oldest purpose-built Quaker Meeting House in the world, in use since 1670.
• The Parliament of England temporarily moved to Hertford during the Great Plague of London. This is why the main square in the town, Parliament Square, is so named, although it is a twentieth century creation.
• The home of Alfred Russel Wallace (see above), now named Wallace House, can be found at 11 St. Andrew St. and is marked with a plaque.
• Built in 1779 the Shire Hall was designed by Robert Adam. The ground floor houses Court Rooms.
• The Hertford Corn Exchange was built on the site of a former gaol. After years in the doldrums it has now reverted to being a live entertainment venue.
• In Cowbridge there is a Prince Albert Cottage. The first of these cottages were originally built in Hyde Park by the Society for Improving the Condition of the Labouring Classes in 1851 at the time of the Great Exhibition. Prince Albert was involved in their design and financing.