The Regierungsbezirk was created in 1947 when the former state of Lippe was incorporated into North Rhine-Westphalia by merging the former Regierungsbezirk Minden with the territory of the Free State of Lippe.

The Regierungsbezirk Detmold is located in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia and therefore it forms the area where the German low mountains are divided from the North German Plain.

As the Regierungsbezirk has an expanse of circa 6,500 km², it is one fifth of the area of North Rhine-Westphalia.

The Regierungsbezirk Detmold has two historical roots: The gross domestic product (GDP) of the region was 77.7 billion € in 2018, accounting for 2.3% of German economic output.

GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 34,700 € or 115% of the EU27 average in the same year.