Matfors is said to have got its name from the rich supply of salmon (Swedish: lax) in the river Ljungan, by which the town was built.

Matfors was for some time its own community/municipality (Swedish: kommun) but then first merged with Attmar and later Sundsvall (beginning of the 1970s).

Later on a sawmill and a papermill were built together with several other minor industries which increased the town's importance towards dominating the area.

The papermill was closed in 1990, at the time owned by SCA, and the original main building now hosts about 20 small businesses.

The Matfors area as a whole is home to many small businesses, but many residents also commute to the neighbouring town of Sundsvall.