There are several villages in the rural parts of the municipality including Hommersåk, Høle, Foss-Eikeland, Stokka, Forsand, Lysebotn, and Vatne.

On 1 July 1957, a small part of Høyland municipality (population: 18) was transferred to the city of Sandnes.

[7] The coat of arms, granted on 21 April 1972, shows a white piece of pottery against a green background.

[8] The municipality lies in the Jæren region and stretches 90 kilometres (56 mi) nearly from the west coast of Norway to the rugged mountainous interior.

The municipality of Sola is located to the west, Klepp and Time, Gjesdal to the south, Sirdal and Bykle to the east, Strand and Hjelmeland to the northeast, and Stavanger to the northwest.

Prior to 2020 (when the municipality was enlarged), the city-municipality of Sandnes was divided into 13 boroughs: Austrått, Figgjo, Ganddal, Hana, Høle, Lura, Malmheim og Soma, Riska, Sandved, Stangeland, Sviland, and Trones og Sentrum.

On the long west coast there are several beaches and further inland the land is raised to form low plains with some small peaks rising up to 400 to 500 metres (1,300 to 1,600 ft) above sea level.

In Sandnes there are some easily accessible small mountain peaks, such as Dalsnuten and Lifjell, with a view over the Sandnes/Stavanger area.

The Lysefjorden in the eastern part of the municipality is surrounded by very steep 1,000-metre (3,300 ft) tall cliffs such as Kjerag and Preikestolen, with the Lysefjord Bridge crossing the fjord near the western end.

The lake Nilsebuvatnet is located high up in the mountains, north of Lysebotn on the border of Strand and Forsand municipalities.

Situated on the southwest coast of Norway, the local climate is greatly influenced by the temperate water in the North Sea, and Atlantic lows giving mild westerlies also in winter.

This creates warmer temperatures throughout the year compared to other cities at similar latitudes, and also gives plentiful precipitation in the form of rain, especially in late autumn and winter.

Sandnes is a little bit more inland than the airport so thus may have slightly warmer summer days and cooler winter nights as a result.

The warmest month on record at Stavanger Airport is August 2002 with mean 19.3 °C (66.7 °F) and average daily high 23.2 °C (73.8 °F).

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Sandnes is made up of 49 representatives that are elected to four-year terms.

[38] Sandnes was formerly known as the pottery town of Norway – due to the important ceramics industry based on the extensive occurrence of clay in the surroundings.

[citation needed] The major tourist attraction in Sandnes is the Science Factory (Vitenfabrikken).

The city is also home to the VID Specialized University Sandnes campus, a private Christian college.