Sylhet Sadar had a literacy rate (age 7 and over) of 61.29%, compared to the national average of 51.8%, and a sex ratio of 899 females per 1000 males.

[7] At the 1991 Bangladesh census, Sylhet Sadar had a population of 554,412, of whom 287,304 were aged 18 or older.

Traditional and religious festivals like Eid-ul-Fitr, Eid-ul-Azha, Raspurnima, Jhulan Jatra and Roth Jatra, Christmas and other religious festivals are peacefully and widely celebrated by people of different religions.

Sylhet Sadar Upazila is divided into eight union parishads: Hatkhola, Jalalabad, Kandigaon, Khadimnagar, Khadimpara, Mogalgaon, Tuker Bazar, and Tultikar.

[6] The average literacy rate of Sylhet Sadar Upazila is 87.6%; male 57.2%, female 44.0%.

Jalalabad Ragib-Rabeya Medical College is the largest; established in 1995, founded by philanthropist Ragib Ali and his wife Rabeya Khatun.