Alvarado is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city also serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. It is located 64 km (40 mi) from the city of Veracruz, Veracruz, on Federal Highways 180 and 125. Alvarado is bordered by Boca del Río, Tlalixcoyan, Medellín, Ignacio de la Llave, Ciudad Lerdo de Tejada, Tlacotalpan and Acula. It is 10 m (33 ft) above sea level. It lies in the so-called "Region Papaloapan" bordered on the south by the municipalities of Acula, Tlacotalpan and Lerdo de Tejada, on the east by the Gulf of Mexico and on the west by Ignacio de la Llave.

Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. Located in eastern Mexico, Veracruz is bordered by seven states, which are Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Hidalgo, Puebla, Oaxaca, Chiapas, and Tabasco. Veracruz is divided into 212 municipalities, and its capital city is Xalapa-Enríquez.