Despite numerous reforms over the centuries, the church of San Michele remains one of the city's most significant examples of Lombard Romanesque architecture.
The complex has a complex construction history: it is very difficult to propose a definite date for the foundation of the first place of worship and, equally, for the current building, which is thought to date from between the end of the 12th and the beginning of the 13th century.

The current appearance of the façade is the result of 19th-century restoration work, which closed off a 17th-century serliana in the central part and restored the two rose windows in the side aisles, which had been replaced by rectangular openings. The interior, on the other hand, was extensively modified at the beginning of the 20th century, with the replacement of the original truss roof. 
In the apse, raised above the level of the naves, the basin is entirely occupied by a fresco depicting the Last Judgement. Inside the church, there are also 16th-century masterpieces by Giulio Campi, Bernardino Campi and Andrea Mainardi.

Outside, to the left of the façade, is Palazzo Vergani, an ancient Cremonese residence where, at the end of the 19th century, the Vergani company was founded, known for having started and exported the production of nougat internationally.