The municipality of Contepec is located in the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt in northeast Michoacán at an altitude between 2,100 and 3,200 metres (6,900–10,500 ft).

It borders the Michoacano municipalities of Epitacio Huerta to the northwest, Maravatío to the west, and Tlalpujahua to the southwest, as well as the municipalities of Amealco de Bonfil in Querétaro to the northeast, and Temascalcingo and El Oro de Hidalgo of the State of Mexico to the east and southeast.

[6] The mountains on the municipality's eastern border with Temascalcingo are protected as the Altamirano unit of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

[7] Tepuxtepec Dam is located on the Lerma River which flows through the northern and western part of Contepec.

[11] The municipal government comprises a president, a councillor (Spanish: síndico), and seven trustees (regidores), four elected by relative majority and three by proportional representation.