It originated as a small village on the outskirts of Hamburg and was eventually incorporated when the city expanded.

In the Second World War Eilbek was almost completely destroyed by the heavy air raids in July 1943 (codenamed Operation Gomorrah).

In 2006 according to the statistical office of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, the quarter Eilbek has a total area of 1.7 km2 (1 sq mi).

To the north and the west the quarters Barmbek-Süd, Uhlenhorst and Hohenfelde of the borough Hamburg-Nord border on Eilbek.

[5] These are the results of Eilbek in the Hamburg state election: The Bundesstraße 75 leads through the quarter, connecting the city Lübeck in the North with Delmenhorst in Lower Saxony.