It has a railway and autobahn connection to Groningen, Netherlands, Emden, Bremen and the South (Rheine and the Ruhr industrial region).

Originally, the city was situated at a meander near the mouth of the river Leda into the Ems, which is still the center of the town today.

In 791 AD Saint Ludger built the first chapel in East Frisia at the western edge of the settlement Leer, then still named Hleri after feetlot, willow.

In 1508, Count Edzard obtained the official right to host a market, which started the tradition of the "Gallimarkt," which is now an annual fair.

Unlike Emden, Leer only suffered little damage by Allied bombing in World War II.

[1] The town council consists of (elections of 2016):[4] Leer is a traditional Protestant city and home to both the Lutheran and Reformed churches.

Furthermore, Leer offers an unusually large variety of smaller religious communities, especially Baptists, Mennonites, Methodists, Adventists and Mormons.

Even though Eastern Frisia is a mainly a Protestant region, there is a small Roman Catholic community in Leer.