Margareten has been part of Vienna since 1850 and the 5th Viennese municipal district since 1861. It is located within the Gürtel, which was created in place of the former Linienwall, and was previously the suburb of Margareten, which was subject to a landlordship.

The district was separated from the 4th district, Wieden, in 1861 and established as an independent district. Margareten is a typical inner district, a densely populated area with few green spaces. Margareten is considered a working-class district and has numerous municipal buildings near the belt. The district had about 54,000 inhabitants on 201 hectares in 2015.

Margaretenplatz is home to the castle-like Margaretenhof, built in 1884/85. In the late historic courtyard, the idea of urban apartment building and cottage are closely interwoven architecturally - in the form of an imposing residential courtyard, populated with a small avenue. All houses of the Margaretenhof have a small front garden and a garden portal. On Rechte Wienzeile, near the Pilgramgasse subway station, stands the Vorwärts building. It was the seat of the Republican Protection League, the party headquarters of the SDAP as well as the Vorwärts publishing house. A hotel was built in place of demolished annexes to the Vorwärts building.

The numerous municipal buildings near the Gürtel are particularly characteristic of Margareten. The first Viennese municipal building was the Metzleinstaler Hof (1919/20) on Margaretengürtel. The Reumannhof gained notoriety during the Civil War as the supposedly impregnable main base of the Schutzbund. In the post-war period, the Matzleinsdorfer Hochhaus (South Tower), a striking 20-story high-rise, was built near Matzleinsdorfer Platz.