This chapter provides a general description of the Brazilian Continental Shelf, presenting an overview of the circulation and its forcing mechanisms, the water masses and sea surface elevation. Two water masses are commonly found at surface levels, the Tropical Water and the Coastal Water. South Atlantic Central Water is also found at the bottom in deeper shelves of the southern portion. The circulation is governed by a complex combination of western boundary currents, wind regimes, tides and buoyancy fluxes. The main driven mechanism of the currents, however, varies along the coast and depends on the local characteristics of the shelf. The physical characteristics of the shelf is also complex, varying from very wide (~300 km) to very narrow (~10 km), from equatorial to subtropical regions, from zonal to meridional coastline orientation. As a result of this combination of forcing systems and dimensions, the Brazilian Continental Shelf must be understood as a succession of shelves with specific hydrodynamics and physical properties.