Butterflies exhibit high sensitivity to environmental changes. Consequently, they are widely recognized as effective bioindicator species. Assessing the diversity, richness, and community structure of species in urban and rural habitats is essential for gaining a comprehensive understanding of the environmental heterogeneity and habitat quality that influence butterfly assemblages. These comparative analyses are instrumental in understanding the impacts of anthropogenic disturbances and land-use changes on butterfly populations. The species diversity and richness along with community structure in the urban as well as rural sections of Ramnagar block in the Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal, India, were recorded, analysed, and compared in this paper. A total of 3433 individuals belonging to 64 species and 5 families were recorded during a one-year survey period. Pielou evenness index and Shannon diversity index were calculated. The species diversity and richness were higher (3.93 and 64) in rural areas compared to urban areas (3.44 and 41).  The greatest number of species belonged to the Nymphalidae family (24 species), and the smallest to the Papilionidae family (8 species). Danaus genutia was the most dominant species, and Pelopidas conjuncta and Badamia exclamatonis were the least abundant species in rural areas, whereas Danaus chrysippus was the most abundant species and Lethe europa was the least abundant one in urban areas. Various anthropogenic activities like new constructions of lodges, hotels, buildings, widening of old roads, construction of new roads, deforestation, industrialisation, lack of natural water bodies and pollution may have caused disparities in the diversity and composition of butterfly populations in urban and rural areas.