Abstract:We study the finite term of the holographic entanglement entropy of finite domains with smooth shapes and for four dimensional gravitational backgrounds. Analytic expressions depending on the unit vectors normal to the minimal area surface are obtained for both stationary and time dependent spacetimes. The special cases of AdS 4 , asymptotically AdS 4 black holes, domain wall geometries and Vaidya-AdS backgrounds have been analysed explicitly. When the bulk spacetime is AdS 4 , the finite term is the Willmore energy of the minimal area surface viewed as a submanifold of the three dimensional flat Euclidean space. For the static spacetimes, some numerical checks involving spatial regions delimited by ellipses and non convex domains have been performed. In the case of AdS 4 , the infinite wedge has been also considered, recovering the known analytic formula for the coefficient of the logarithmic divergence.