A cottage is a small house of any period. It is the equivalent of a modern villa in Europe.

A cottage may also denote a small holding comprising houses, outbuildings and supporting farmland or woods. A cottage in this sense is thought of being barely sufficient to support one farming family, and would typically include only a few acres of tilled land.

Most buildings known as cottages in North America are used for weekend gettaways by city dwellers. They are generally located near lakes or the ocean in wilderness areas (though not usually far from amenities) and utilized as a place to go fishing and hiking.