In the Pre-Columbian period (the period before European contact with and colonization of the Americas), diverse indigenous societies spread through North and South America as well as the Caribbean. These societies differed greatly in their types of political organization, economies, culture, and religion.

In North America, many indigenous groups lived a settled lifestyle, but some, particularly in the Southwest, were nomadic hunters, following the great herds of buffalo. The settled groups varied in size. Some, in the plains, lived in small villages. Others, such as the ancient Pueblo peoples built great adobe cliff dwellings with as many as a thousand rooms.

In the Northeast, groups of tribes formed confederacies. Indigenous groups hunted and fished, and the settled peoples farmed, raising crops such as corn, beans, squash, and tobacco. Their religions were diverse and frequently animist. In the Mississippian culture, priest-kings led the society and earthen mounds or pyramids were constructed in connection with their religion.

As many as 20,000 people lived at Cahokia, a center of the Mississippian culture. Extensive trade networks spread across north America, and goods such as salt, hides, feathers, and obsidian for making tools and weapons were exchanged across great distances.

In Mexico, several noteworthy civilizations arose. The Mayan civilization flourished in southern Mexico and Guatemala until about 900 CE. Mayans practised agriculture, raising the same types of crops as the North American peoples, and lived in cities like Tikal, and Copan, which had populations in the 10s of thousands.

They had a hieroglyphic writing system and built great stone pyramids for their gods, many of whom were nature gods. Mayans sometimes went to war, and engaged in human sacrifice, believing that these offerings would guarantee fertility. The Maya are also well known for their skill in astronomy and mathematics.

Their society declined after 900 CE, possibly due to warfare and drought. The Aztec society also flourished in Mexico. The Aztec capital was Tenochtitlán; it was built on islands in a swampy lake, which the Aztec managed using canals and aqueducts, proving their skill in engineering. At the time of the Spanish conquest, the population of Tenochtitlán is thought to have been around 400,000.

Aztec society was dominated by military leaders and also had a class of priests. Warfare was frequent, and the Aztecs dominated many surrounding native groups. Like the Maya, they built in stone, raising pyramids to their gods. They had a form of written language that was based on pictographs or glyphs, and a well-developed solar calendar.

Aztec society was still developing when the Spanish reached central Mexico. In South America, the Inca civilization was centered in the Andes in Peru, stretching north through Ecuador and south into Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile. The Inca, like the Maya and Aztecs, built stone temples and palaces. Their capital was Cuzco, which had a population of up to 200,000.

An especially well-known example of their architecture is Machu Picchu, although this was abandoned before the arrival of the Spanish. They grew many crops, including corn and potatoes and raised llamas, guinea pigs, and other animals for food. They did not have a form of writing, but kept records using bundles of knotted strings called quipu. Like the Mayan peoples, they worshiped nature gods and practised human sacrifice.