Anjō is situated in southern Aichi Prefecture, approximately 30 kilometres (19 mi) from central Nagoya, in the center of the Okazaki Plain, on the west bank of the Yahagi River.

Tokugawa Ieyasu unified the region and destroyed the power of the Jōdo Shinshū sect in the Battle of Azukizaka (1564).

At the start of the Meiji period, on October 1, 1889, Anjō was one of a collection of villages organized within Hekikai District, Aichi Prefecture by the establishment of the modern municipalities system.

Anjō has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city legislature of 28 members.

In terms of national politics, the city is part of Aichi District 13 of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.

In addition to rice, wheat, and soybeans, notable agricultural products include figs, Japanese pears, and cucumbers.