As a beautiful seaside city located on the southeast coast of China, Xiamen faces Jinmen Islands and lies opposite Taiwan and the Penghu Islands across the Taiwan Straits. Legend has it that white egrets inhabited this area in the ancient times, hence its name Egret Island. Its annual average temperature is around 20°C, without any extreme heat or cold. With a land area of 1,573.2 km2 and a sea area of 390 km2, Xiamen administers six districts, namely Siming, Huli, Jimei, Haicang, Tong'an and Xiang'an. Southern Fukinese is the city's pervasive local dialect among its 4.01 million permanent residents.

Xiamen is one of the most competitive cities in China and one of the first Special Economic Zones on the mainland. As a vice-provincial city independently listed on the state development planning, it is granted provincial-level authority on economic administration and local legislative power. In 2010, Xiamen SEZ was expanded to cover the whole municipality. Now it has already become a modern and international port city featuring beautiful scenery. In 2017, the per capita GDP of the permanent residents exceeded $435.1 billion yuan ($69.2 billion). The fiscal revenue accounted for 27.3 percent of the local GDP.

Known as one of the most livable cities in China, Xiamen has been awarded numerous national and international honors, such as National City of Excellence in Social Ethics, International Nations in Bloom, UN-Habitat Scroll of Honor Awards, National Sanitary City, National Garden City, National Model City for Environment Protection, China Excellent Tourist City, China Top Ten Livable Cities, etc. It is also one of the top ten tourist destinations and one of the most frequently visited international cruise terminals in China. The major tourist attractions in the city include Gulangyu Island, Wanshi Botanic Garden, Island Ring Road, Nanputuo Buddhist Temple, Horticulture Expo Garden, Jimei School Village, Dadeng Islands, Haicang Bridge and Huoshaoyu Ecological Park.

Major Economic Indicators of Xiamen in 2017