Neighboring municipalities are Felixlândia (N), Abaeté (W), Martinho Campos, Papagaios, and Pitangui (S), and Curvelo (E).

Pompéu is in the middle tier of municipalities in the state with regard to economic and social development.

A major agricultural activity is extraction of charcoal, which is shipped by truck to be used in the industries of the Belo Horizonte region.

[7] The highest ranking municipality in Minas Gerais in 2000 was Poços de Caldas with 0.841, while the lowest was Setubinha with 0.568.

In more recent statistics (considering 5,507 municipalities) Manari in the state of Pernambuco has the lowest rating in the country—0,467—putting it in last place.

The town began with Pouso dos Buritis, a resting place for the muleteers who travelled from Montes Claros to the Northeast of Minas Gerais.