Compounds containing copper(I) are of interest for their role in biological processes. The nature of short (< ∼3.2 Å) Cu...Cu contacts within these compounds has been debated, being either described as weakly attractive (bonding) `cuprophilic' interactions, or simply as short metal–metal distances constrained by ligand geometry or largely ionic in nature. The title three-dimensional Cu+-containing coordination polymer, [Cu3(C7H7N2O2)Cl2]n, was formed from thein situreduction of CuCl2in the presence of 3,5-diaminobenzoic acid and KOH under hydrothermal conditions. Its complex crystal structure contains ten distinct CuIatoms, two of which lie on crystallographic inversion centres. The copper coordination geometries include near-linear CuOCl and CuN2, T-shaped CuOCl2and distorted tetrahedral CuOCl3groups. Each CuIatom is also associated with two adjacent metal atoms, with Cu...Cu distances varying from 2.7350 (14) to 3.2142 (13) Å; if all these are regarded as `cuprophilic' interactions, then infinite [\overline{1}01] zigzag chains of CuIatoms occur in the crystal. The structure is consolidated by N—H...Cl hydrogen bonds.