Cheshire East is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.

The borough was established in April 2009 as part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England, by virtue of an order under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007. It was an amalgamation of the boroughs of Macclesfield, Congleton and Crewe and Nantwich, together with a disaggregated share of the former Cheshire County Council. The residual part of the disaggregated former County Council, together with the other three former Cheshire borough councils (Chester City, Ellesmere Port & Neston and Vale Royal) were, similarly, amalgamated to create the new unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester. The decision to create the two unitary authorities was announced on 25 July 2007 following a consultation period, in which a proposal to create a single Cheshire unitary authority was rejected.

The electoral wards for the new unitary authority currently use the same boundaries as the outgoing Cheshire County Council's electoral divisions, with each ward electing 3 councillors and representing between 8,800 and 12,000 people. At the last Cheshire County Council election in 2005 there were 15 Conservative controlled wards, 6 Labour controlled wards, 5 Liberal Democrat controlled wards and 1 ward controlled by an independent within the unitary authority boundaries.

Cheshire ( /ˈtʃɛʃər/ or /ˈtʃɛʃɪər/; also known as the County Palatine of Chester, and archaically, as the County of Chester; abbreviated Ches.) is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although the largest town since county boundary changes in 1974 is Warrington (moved from Lancashire for administrative purposes in 1974). Other major towns include Widnes (also moved from Lancashire in 1974), Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow. Historically the county contained the Wirral, Stockport, Altrincham and other towns. The county is bordered by Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south, and Flintshire and Wrexham in Wales to the west. The county is a part of the Welsh Marches.

Cheshire's area is 2,343 square kilometres (905 sq mi) and its population is around 700,000. Apart from the large towns along the River Mersey and the historic city of Chester, it is mostly rural, with a number of small towns and villages that support an agricultural industry. It is historically famous as a former principality and for the production of Cheshire cheese, salt, bulk chemicals, and woven silk.