The District covers an area of 6,534 km2 (2,523 sq mi).

The administrative capital of the district is Mkata town.

According to the 2002 Tanzania National Census, the population of the Handeni District was 248,633.

[3][4] As of 2012, Handeni District Council was administratively divided into 20 wards.

[4] The dramatic open area to the north of Handeni was the setting for Ernest Hemingway's classic hunting book, Green Hills of Africa.