Münster is an independent city (Kreisfreie Stadt) in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also capital of the local government region Münsterland. Münster was the location of the Anabaptist rebellion during the Protestant Reformation and the site of the signing of the Treaty of Westphalia ending the Thirty Years' War in 1648. Today it is known as the bicycle capital of Germany.

Münster gained the status of a Großstadt (major city) with more than 100,000 inhabitants in 1915. As of 2014, there are 300,000 people living in the city, with about 61,500 students, only some of whom are recorded in the official population statistics as having their primary residence in Münster. Münster is a part of the metropolitan region (Euregio) with more than 1,000,000 inhabitants (Enschede, Hengelo, Gronau, Osnabrück).

Main sights include:

• St. Paul's Cathedral, built in the 13th century in a mixture of late Romanesque and early Gothic styles. It was completely restored after World War II. It includes an astronomical clock of 1540, adorned with hand-painted zodiac symbols, which traces the movement of the planets, and plays a Glockenspiel tune every noon.
• The Prinzipalmarkt, the main shopping street in the city centre with the Gothic city hall (14th century) in which the Peace of Westphalia treaty which put an end to the Thirty Years' War was signed in 1648. Immediately north of the Prinzipalmarkt is the Roggenmarkt.
• St Lambert's Church (1375), with three cages hanging from its tower above the clock face. In 1535 these cages were used to display the corpses of Jan van Leiden and other leaders of the Münster Rebellion, who promoted polygamy and renunciation of all property.
• Überwasserkirche, a Gothic hall church consecreated in 1340 as church of a Stift which grew to be the University of Münster
• The Schloss (palace), built in 1767-87 as residence for the prince-bishops by the Baroque architect Johann Conrad Schlaun and Wilhelm Ferdinand Lipper. Now the administrative centre for the University.
• The Botanischer Garten Münster, a botanical garden founded in 1803
• The Zwinger fortress built in 1528. Used from the 18th to the 20th century as a prison. During World War II, the Gestapo also used the Zwinger for executions
• "Krameramtshaus" (1589), an old guild house, which housed the delegation from the Netherlands during the signing of the Peace of Westphalia
• Stadthaus (1773)
• Haus Rüschhaus (1743-49), a country estate situated in Nienberge, built by Johann Conrad Schlaun for himself
• Erbdrostenhof (1749-53), a Baroque palace, also built by Schlaun, residence of Droste zu Vischering noble family and birthplace of Blessed Mary of the Divine Heart.
• Clemenskirche (1745-53), a Baroque church, also built by Schlaun
• Kreuzkirche, a Gothic-revival church
• Signal-Iduna Building (1961), the first high-rise building in Münster
• LVM-Building, high-rise building near the Aasee
• LBS-Building, location of Münster's first zoo. Some old structures of the former zoo can be found in the park around the office building. Also the "Tuckesburg", the strange-looking house of the zoo's founder, is still intact.
• "Münster Arkaden" (2006), new shopping centre between Prinzipalmarkt and the Pablo Picasso Museum of Graphic Art
• "Cavete", the oldest academic pub in Münster
• Westphalian State Museum of Art and Cultural History
• University Bible museum
• Buddenturm - a former city water tower built about 1150 as a defence tower and now fitted with windows, is near the largest aggregation of pubs in the city
• City Museum ("Stadtmuseum"), exhibition of a large collection showing the political and cultural history of the city from its beginning up to present, housed by a converted former department store
• University Mineralogical Museum
• Westphalian Horse Museum ("Hippomax")
• Mühlenhof open-air museum, depicting a typical Westphalian village as it looked centuries ago
• Westphalian Museum for Natural History, state museum and planetarium
• Museum of Lacquer Art (founded and operated by the company BASF Coatings)
• Pablo Picasso Museum of Graphic Art, the only museum devoted exclusively to the graphic works of Pablo Picasso
• Pinkus Müller, the only brewery left in Münster; originally there were more than 150.
• Kiepenkerl statue in Kiepenkerl Square