Measured from north to south, the region covers a distance of approximately 400 km (250 mi).

As of the designations in the Canada 2021 Census of census metropolitan areas (CMAs) and census agglomerations (CAs) in Alberta, the corridor includes three of the province's four CMAs (Calgary, Edmonton and Red Deer) and two CAs (Lacombe and Sylvan Lake), in addition to four other CAs already included in the Calgary and Edmonton CMAs.

A Canadian Pacific Kansas City rail line, originally built by the Calgary and Edmonton Railway in 1891, roughly parallels the highway.

The following presents the historic population growth of the Calgary–Edmonton Corridor between 1996 and 2021 by its three census divisions.

A 2003 study by TD Bank Financial Group found the GDP per capita in the corridor is 10% above average compared to U.S. metropolitan areas and 40% above average compared to other Canadian cities.