The Serie B 1959–60 was the twenty-eighth tournament of this competition played in Italy since its creation.
Mantova and Catanzaro had been promoted from Serie C, while Triestina and Torino had been relegated from Serie A.
Consequently, to the reform of the professional football in Italy following the Belfast Disaster, the first-ever elimination of the Italy football team into the World Cup Qualifiers, both a third promotion and relegation was introduced.