In this bachelor's thesis, we deal with the evaluation of microbial and physicochemical characteristics of urban soils in Žiar nad Hronom, Slovakia and its surroundings. The study aimed at finding out how the way of land usage affects the characteristics or quality of the soil. For this purpose, soil samples were collected from different localities and then compared against each other. We took soil samples in two terms in 2019 - at the turn of June and July, and in October. Sampling points were established within 5 types of land usage i.e croplands, grassplots, near a local aluminium products factory, near the roads, and in parks in three repetitions. In soil samples, we determined the following characteristics: soil moisture, the content of N, C and S, C/N ratio, pH, basal respiration, catalase activity, and abundance and diversity of functional groups of microorganisms using BIOLOG® system. The largest difference was measured between the summer and autumn sampling periods soil moisture, which showed the largest difference in the soils near the aluminium factory. The soils nearby the aluminium factory were found to be slightly acidic, the soils near the roads slightly alkaline. In the grass soils, the pH was in the neutral range. The highest values of C, N and S were measured in parks, whereas the lowest values were recorded in the cropland. C/N ratio was the lowest on the cropland and the highest near the roads. Soils at the aluminium products factory showed the lowest values of abundance and diversity of functional groups of microorganisms, on the other hand, we recorded the highest values of abundance and diversity near the roads.