Excavations in Agordat uncovered pottery related to the C-Group (Temehu) pastoral culture, which inhabited the Nile Valley between 2500 and 1500 BC.

The local economy is reliant on passing traders moving between Asmara and Kessela in Sudan.

Agordat has many restaurants, as well as a hospital built during the colonial period in Italian Eritrea.

A considerable amount of Eritrea's fruit and vegetables, particularly bananas and oranges, are transported through the town.

Ak'ordat has a hot arid climate (Köppen BWh) with hot to sweltering temperatures throughout the year and a short wet season from mid-June to mid-September due to the northward extension of the West African Monsoon and the African Easterly Jet.