Loreto, a hill town, is a comune of the Italian province of Ancona, in the Marche and most commonly known as the seat of the Basilica della Santa Casa, a popular Catholic pilgrimage site.

Loreto is located 127 metres (417 feet) above sea level on the right bank of the Musone river and 22 kilometres (14 miles) by rail south-southeast of Ancona; like many places in the Marche, it provides good views from the Apennines to the Adriatic.

The city's main monuments occupy the four sides of the piazza: the college of the Jesuits; the Palazzo Comunale (formerly the Palazzo Apostolico), designed by Bramante, that houses an art gallery with works of Lorenzo Lotto, Vouet and Annibale Carracci as well as a collection of maiolica, and the Shrine of the Holy House (Santuario della Santa Casa). It also boasts a massive line of walls, designed by the architect ( and military engineer ) Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, which were erected from 1518 and reinforced in the 17th century.