The Villages is a census-designated place (CDP) spanning Sumter, Marion, and Lake counties in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the central area of a larger master-planned, age-restricted community known as The Villages. Situated in central Florida, about 20 miles (32 km) south of Ocala and 45 miles (72 km) northwest of Orlando, the CDP had a population of 79,077 at the 2020 United States census. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford metropolitan statistical area.