The Electorate of Cologne (German: Kurfürstentum Köln), sometimes referred to as Electoral Cologne (German: Kurköln), was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire and existed from the 10th to the early 19th century. It consisted of the temporal possessions of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cologne (German: Erzbistum Köln). It was ruled by the Archbishop in his capacity as prince-elector. There were only two other ecclesiastical prince-electors in the Empire: the Electorate of Mainz and the Electorate of Trier. The Archbishop-Elector of Cologne was also Arch-chancellor of Italy (one of the three component titular kingdoms of the Holy Roman Empire, the other two being Germany and Burgundy) and, as such, ranked second among all ecclesiastical and secular princes of the Empire, after the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz, and before that of Trier.
The capital of the electorate was Cologne until the Elector moved to Bonn (after the 1288 defeat) to avoid jurisdiction conflicts with the authorities of the Free City of Cologne, who largely escaped its authority. The Electorate was secularized in 1803 during the German Mediatisation.
The territory of the Electorate of Cologne was smaller than the Archdiocese of Cologne, which included suffragant bishoprics such as Liège and Munster.