The local economy consists largely of subsistence hunting for walrus, seals, fish, and bowhead whales.

St. Lawrence Island has been inhabited sporadically for the past 2,000 years by both Alaskan Yup'ik and Siberian Yupik people.

Gambell and Savoonga received joint title to most of the land on St. Lawrence Island under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (16 km2), all of it land.

There are daily flights from Nome to Savoonga Airport, weather permitting.

Savoonga has a polar climate (Köppen ET) with short, cool summers and long, freezing winters lasting from the beginning of October to the end of May.

The racial makeup of the city was 95.33% Native American, 4.35% White, 0.16% Asian, and 0.16% from other races.

16.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 0.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Other jobs involved air transportation, fishing, and the oil industry.