Updated: March 08, 2025

The Batcave is a subterranean location appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It is the headquarters of the superhero Batman, whose secret identity is Bruce Wayne and his partners, consisting of caves beneath his personal residence, Wayne Manor.

The Batcave appeared in the 1960s Batman television series and in the films Batman ( 1989 ), Batman Returns ( 1992 ), Batman Forever ( 1995 ), Batman and Robin ( 1997 ), The Dark Knight Trilogy ( 2005 to 201 2), and in the DC Extended Universe ( 2016 to 2023 ), as well as The Batman ( 2022 ).

Publication History:

Originally, there was only a secret tunnel that ran underground between Wayne Manor and a dusty old barn where the Batmobile was kept. Later, in Batman #12 ( August to September 1942 ), Bill Finger mentioned "secret underground hangars". In 1943, the writers of the first Batman film serial, titled Batman, gave Batman a complete underground crime lab and introduced it in the second chapter entitled "The Bat's Cave". The entrance was via a secret passage through a grandfather clock and included bats flying around.

Bob Kane, who was on the film set, mentioned this to Bill Finger who was going to be the initial scripter on the Batman daily newspaper strip. Finger included with his script a clipping from Popular Mechanics that featured a detailed cross-section of underground hangars. Kane used this clipping as a guide, adding a study, crime lab, workshop, hangar and garage. This illustration appeared in the Batman "dailies" on October 29, 1943, in a strip entitled "The Bat Cave!"

In this early version the cave itself was described as Batman's underground study and, like the other rooms, was just a small alcove with a desk and filing cabinets. Like in the film serial, Batman's symbol was carved into the rock behind the desk and had a candle in the middle of it. The entrance was via a bookcase which led to a secret elevator.

The Batcave made its comic book debut in Detective Comics #83 in January 1944. Over the decades, the cave has expanded along with its owner's popularity to include a vast trophy room, supercomputer, and forensics lab. There has been little consistency as to the floor plan of the Batcave or its contents. The design has varied from artist to artist and it is not unusual for the same artist to draw the cave layout differently in various issues.