It is composed of four villages: Călnaci (Kalnács), Duda (Dudád), Filpea (Fülpe), and Subcetate.

The commune is situated at the northeastern edge of Transylvania, at an altitude of 712 m (2,336 ft), in the eastern foothills of the Gurghiu Mountains, and lies on the banks of the Mureș River.

The Subcetate railway station serves the CFR Main Line 400, which connects Brașov to Satu Mare.

The commune is crossed by county road DJ153D, which ends 3 km (1.9 mi) to the north in national road DN12 [ro] (part of European route E578) that runs from Chichiș, Covasna County to Toplița.

Ethnic Romanians were the majority, with 1,960 people (93%); although Subcetate historically belongs to the Székely Land, only 100 Hungarians (5%) lived in the village in 2002.