It was held on 27 July 2013, over a distance of 232 km (144.2 mi), starting and finishing in San Sebastián, in the Basque Country, Spain.

It was the nineteenth event of the 2013 UCI World Tour season.

The race was won by RadioShack–Leopard's Tony Gallopin, after he made a solo attack on the race's final climb – the Alto de Arkale – and was able to hold off the remainder of the field, to take the biggest win of his career.

[3] As the Clásica de San Sebastián was a UCI World Tour event, all 19 UCI ProTeams were invited automatically and obligated to send a squad.

Caja Rural–Seguros RGA were given a wildcard place to form a 20-team peloton.