A garden apartment is a living unit located at ground level on property that is usually landscaped. Although the term garden apartment is often used loosely to describe any first floor apartment such as one in a high rise or basement, a true garden apartment has no household above it. Garden apartments are not vertically stacked, but rather horizontally spread out in an open area that may have a courtyard. Garden apartments are found all over the world.

Many garden apartments have one or two bedrooms, but some may have three or even more. A garden apartment rented for vacation use is furnished, while one rented out long-term is often unfurnished. There may be one or two stories to the apartment and the entrance could be off of a street or a courtyard. The common garden area may include a swimming pool or other outdoor amenities such as a basketball or tennis court. Some garden apartment complexes have a clubhouse or spa.

Attractive garden apartments have well cared-for grounds with flowers and trees. The owners of the apartment property are responsible for the upkeep of the outdoor areas. If an area for dogs is included, then tenants are responsible for cleaning up after their pets. Some garden apartments may include a small yard, but most have a patio. A garden apartment patio can be a nice place to have a barbecue or outdoor meal or just enjoy some fresh air if the grounds are well maintained.

Although tenants share the main outside grounds and any amenities such as a pool, each garden apartment is a separate household unit. For example, each apartment has its own furnace and heat controls as well as kitchen and bathroom facilities. This may not be the case in some older garden apartments though.

A walk-up apartment is a type of garden apartment that has an outdoor staircase. The apartment may be located on top of a parking garage. Tenants often have a designated parking spot in the garage in which to park their vehicles. The parking places are likely to be numbered for easy identification.