| Department of Caldas | |
| Native Name: | Departamento de Caldas |
| Native Name Lang: | es |
| Type: | Department |
| Image Map1: | Caldas Topographic 2.png |
| Map Caption1: | Topography of the department |
| Coordinates: | 5.1°N -108°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: |  Colombia |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Andean Region |
| Parts Type: | Largest city |
| Parts Style: | para |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Established Date: | 1905 |
| Blank Name Sec1: | Provinces |
| Blank1 Name Sec1: | Municipalities |
| Blank1 Info Sec1: | 27 |
| Seat Type: | Capital |
| Seat: | Manizales |
| Leader Title: | Governor |
| Leader Name: | Henry Gutiérrez Ángel (2024-2027) |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Area Total Km2: | 7888 |
| Area Rank: | 28th |
| Population Footnotes: | [1] |
| Population Total: | 998255 |
| Population As Of: | 2018 |
| Population Rank: | 17th |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics Type1: | GDP |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Total |
| Demographics1 Info1: | COP 23,953 billion (US$ 5.6 billion) |
| Blank Name Sec2: | HDI (2019) |
| Blank Info Sec2: | 0.778[2] · 6th of 33 |
| Timezone1: | UTC-05 |
| Iso Code: | CO-CAL |
| Website: | gobernaciondecaldas.gov.co |
Caldas (pronounced as /es/) is a department of Colombia named after Colombian patriotic figure Francisco José de Caldas. It is part of the Paisa Region and its capital is Manizales. The population of Caldas is 998,255, and its area is 7,291 km2. Caldas is also part of the Colombian Coffee-Growers Axis region along with the Risaralda and Quindio departments, which were politically separated from Caldas in 1966.
Caldas has 6 districts.
The Miel I Dam is situated in Caldas.[3]
The population of Caldas is 984,128 (2013), half of whom live in Manizales. The racial composition is:
The local inhabitants of Caldas are known as caldenses. Of the five main regional groups in Colombia, the predominant group in Caldas are known as paisa, referring to those living in the Paisa region, which covers most of Antioquia, as well as the departments of Caldas, Risaralda and Quindío.