Harlem stretches from the East River west to the Hudson River between 155th Street; where it meets Washington Heights—to a border along the south. Central Harlem begins at 110th Street, at the northern boundary of Central Park; Spanish Harlem is in Eastern Harlem and extends south to 96th Street, while in the west the neighborhood begins north of Upper West Side, which gives an irregular border west of Morningside Avenue. Harlem's boundaries have changed over the years. The neighborhood contains a number of smaller, cohesive districts.

• West Harlem (west of St. Nicholas Avenue and north of 123rd Street)
• Hamilton Heights, around the Hamilton Grange
• Sugar Hill^[4]
• Manhattanville, north of Morningside Heights
• Central Harlem (east of St. Nicholas Avenue, north of 110th Street, south of 155th Street, west of 5th Avenue.)
• Mount Morris, extending west from Marcus Garvey Park
• Strivers' Row, centered on 139th Street
• Astor Row, centered on 130th Street
• East or Spanish Harlem, also known as El Barrio formerly Italian Harlem (east of Fifth Avenue, above East 96th Street)