Located in northern Ibaraki Prefecture, Hitachi has a long coast along the Pacific Ocean to the east.

Japan National Route 6 runs in parallel with the coast, connecting Tokyo and Sendai, and develops residential and commercial areas in the relatively narrow land of the coastal plain.

Geologically the city covers Cambrian basement, some 500 million years old, with marble being quarried in the west for manufacturing cement material.

Ibaraki Prefecture Hitachi has a Humid continental climate (Köppen Cfa) characterized by warm summers and cold winters with heavy snowfall.

[6] The borders of Hitachi expanded in 1955–1956 through the annexation of the neighboring villages of Hidaka, Sakamoto, Higashiosawa, Nakasato, Toyoura, the towns of Taga and Kuji.

Hitachi has a mayor-council form of government with a directly elected mayor and a unicameral city council of 28 members.

In terms of national politics, the city is part of Ibaraki 5th district of the lower house of the Diet of Japan.