The word Fino derives from the Latin finis (boundary, limit) and the most likely theory is that the name refers to a land designation, meaning that this place would have been on a border or boundary, probably between land under the jurisdiction of Como and that under the jurisdiction of Milan. The term Mornasco, however, was added after the Unification of Italy, following a proposal by Councillor Primavesi. On 23 November 1862, the town council made the decision to change the name, in order to distinguish it from Fino del Monte near Bergamo. Mornasco derives from the word mornee, which means miller in the Brianza dialect. The name was chosen to honour the town's long-standing tradition of water mills. The Fino Mornasco area has long been home to numerous textile, metalworking and chemical companies, as well as businesses in the rubber and leather industries.

The railway station of Fino Mornasco opened in 1878 as a conversion of the Como-Fino-Saronno tramway.