Ballarat Central (known as the Central Business Area by the City of Ballarat and sometimes simply as "Ballarat") is the central locality of Greater Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. The population of Ballarat Central at the 2016 census was 5,328, making it the third most populous in the urban area. It is the administrative headquarters for the City of Ballarat as well as the Ballarat Base Hospital and health services and home to the city's major religious institutions and a major retail, commercial and inner city residential area.