The museum, dedicated to the history and culture of Russia from ancient times to the present, has a collection that has been formed over nearly one and a half centuries and includes over 4.5 million museum items.

The main exhibition features rare exhibits such as mammoth tusks from Siberia, a marble Greek sarcophagus, faience sculptures by M. A. Vrubel, and paintings by I. E. Repin. More detailed information about the collection of the Historical Museum and its events can be found on the GIM Media Portal.

The museum complex also includes the Cathedral of the Intercession (known as St. Basil's Cathedral) and the Romanov Chambers in Zaryadye. In the early 2000s, the Historical Museum was transferred neighboring buildings of the former Moscow City Duma, the Mint, and the Nikolsky Trading Rows, to free the ensemble of the Novodevichy Convent and the Krutitsy Patriarchal Compound from museum collections and services. New exhibition halls, the Museum of the Patriotic War of 1812, and the Artillery Courtyard were opened in these buildings.