Higashikagawa is located in far eastern Kagawa Prefecture, on the island of Shikoku, facing the Seto Inland Sea to the north.

From the Heian period the Hiketa port prospered as a good natural harbor and a gateway to Shikoku from the Kinai region.

Even today, many of the intricate alleyways and old buildings from the Edo and Meiji periods still exist, preserving the atmosphere of a pre-modern fishing town.

Following the Meiji restoration, the area was organized into villages within Ōchi District, Kagawa with the creation of the modern municipalities system on February 15, 1890.

[6] Higashikagawa has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 18 members.

JTEKT (formerly Koyo Seiko), one of the major companies of the Toyota Group, produces 25% of the global market share of tapered roller bearings.