Tongliao is located in eastern Inner Mongolia and the western Songliao plain. It has an area of 59,535 square kilometers, and eight banners, county-level cities, and regions, with one development area. 

Tongliao has a profound ethnic culture. It was the hometown of Qing Dynasty Empress Xiaozhuangwen, patriotic general Senggelinqin, and national hero Gadameilin. As a famous city of prairie culture, Tongliao is known as "the birthplace of Andaiart", "the birthplace of national folk music", and "the birthplace of printmaking". Andai dance, Uliger, and Mongolian Hur were listed among the first intangible cultural heritages of China.

Tongliao has abundant agricultural and husbandry resources: farmlands of 2.15 million hectares, and grasslands of 1.76 million hectares. It serves as an important commodity grain base and husbandry production base.

Tongliao has advantageous traffic conditions. Located at the intersection of Jilin, Liaoning and Inner Mongolia, it is an important transport hub connecting Northeast and Northern China. With five railways and three national highways running through it, Tongliao station is an important junction of national railways and one of 14 marshalling stations.