Lafayette (, ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The city is the most populous and parish seat of Lafayette Parish, and is located along the Vermilion River. It is Louisiana's fourth largest incorporated municipality by population and the 219th most populous in the United States, with a 2019 census–estimated population of 126,199; the consolidated city–parish's population was 244,390 in 2019. The Greater Lafayette metropolitan area was Louisiana's third largest metropolitan statistical area with a population of 489,207 at the 2019 American Community Survey, overtaking the Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area.