San Carlos is a city in the Maldonado Department of southern Uruguay. "San Carlos" is also the name of the municipality to which the city belongs. The municipality includes the following zones: San Carlos, El Tesoro, La Barra, Edén Rock, El Chorro, Manantiales, Balneario Buenos Aires, Punta Piedras, Santa Mónica, , El Edén, Paso de la Cantera, Las Cañas, Carapé, Mataojo, Guardia Vieja, Pago de la Paja, Partido Norte, Partido Oeste, Cañada Bellaca, Corte de la Leña, Punta del Campanera, Puntas de Mataojo, and Laguna José Ignacio.
The city is located on Route 39, south of its intersection with Route 9 and about north of the center of the department capital city of Maldonado. The stream Arroyo San Carlos flows along the east limits of the city and the park and neighbourhood of Parque Medina is situated across it.
It was founded on October 1763 by the Spanish Governor Pedro Antonio de Cevallos, to discourage the foundation of Portuguese settlements in the region. Its name is originated from that of the King of Spain at the time, Charles III.
It had acquired the status of "Villa" (town) before the Independence of Uruguay, which was elevated to "Ciudad" (city) on 18 December 1929 by the Act of Ley Nú 8.559.
In 2023, San Carlos had a population of 30,923. This makes it the second largest city in Maldonado Department after the capital city of Maldonado. According to the Intendencia Departamnetal de Maldonado, the municipality of San Carlos has a population of 27,000.
Source: Instituto Nacional de EstadÃÂstica de Uruguay
It is considered to be the agropecuarian centre of the region.