Local government areas of Western Australia

The Australian state of Western Australia is divided into 140 local government areas (LGAs). Their mandate and operations are governed by the Local Government Act 1995. The Shire of Christmas Island and the Shire of Cocos are Federal external territories and covered by the Indian Ocean Territories Administration of Laws Act which allows the Local Government Act to apply "on-Island" as though it were a Federal Act. Nonetheless, Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands are not part of Western Australia.

There are three classifications of local government in Western Australia:
 * City (predominantly urban, some larger regional centres)
 * Town (predominantly inner urban and three medium sized rural centres)
 * Shire (predominantly rural or outer suburban areas)

Historically, two types of local government existed—municipalities, which represented towns or condensed urban areas, and road districts, which represented all other regions. The Perth Road District, for instance, was the precursor to the City of Stirling. Only a few cities—Perth, Fremantle, Subiaco, South Perth and Nedlands—existed prior to 1961. On 1 July 1961, all road districts became shires, and all municipalities became towns.