Nine of these, including Chongoleani, Mabokweni, Mzizima, Kiomoni, Kirare, Marungu, Tongoni, Masiwani Maweni, and Pongweu, are peri-urban areas.

Additional wards in 2022:[7] Segeju and Digo people, who have long subsisted off the land and the water, were the first to settle in the area that is now Tanga City.

In the fourteenth century, Swahili and Shirazi traders founded the current settlement on Tanga bay's Toten Island.

The Portuguese created a trading post as a part of their East African coastal dominion, and between 1500 and 1700, they ruled the area for more than 200 years.

Since independence of Tanganyika, Tanga City has been essential to the development of the national economy by connecting areas, people, and things and facilitating trade and social contact.

[10] In the 1890s, when Germany was still in control of Tanga, the city underwent significant development as a result of German colonial administration.

The British took over following the end of World War I, and the railway was completed from Mnyusi to Ruvu on the principal line, providing Tanga with a direct rail link to the capital Dar es Salaam.

The Tanganyika Territory African Civil Services Association was established in 1922 and had its headquarters in Tanga, the first recognized modern native governmental entity at the time.

[14] The weather of Tanga is categorized as tropical, with rainier winters than summers, according to the Köppen climate classification.

[16] After a decline brought on by the collapse of the sisal export market between 1960 and 1970, Tanga's economy is currently seeing a resurgence.

As a result of expanded markets, privatization, improved infrastructure, and more government backing for investment, new large and small scale industries and businesses are emerging.

Additionally, there is significant growth in the development of solar and wind-generated electricity at different scales, including in private residences and organizations like hospitals.

[20] All forms of transportation—road, rail, water, and air, all serve Tanga City, with the road and river dominating the flow of people and commodities.

Regarding air travel, the city's Kange airport handles small planes and offers access to Pemba, Dar es Salaam, and occasionally other adjacent regions and countries.

The Tanzania Posts Corporation (TPC), which also offers internet labs and other commercial providers, handles postal services such as handling of freight and mail, money transfers, the selling of postage stamps, and Expected Mail Services (EMS).

[22] The City Council is a part of the "National ICT Broadband Backbone" and is covered by several cellular service providers, including Tanzania Telecommunication Company (TTCL), Vodacom, Tigo, Airtel, Zantel, and Halotel.

[23] In Tanga City Council, agriculture makes up roughly 26.7% of the total revenue from own sources (crops 4.4% and livestock 22.2%).

[24] Cassava, maize, and cowpeas are three of the main food crops farmed in the Tanga City Council.

Sisal, cashew nuts, coconut, mangoes, and oranges are the main cash crops grown in Tanga council.

[25] About 15% of the population of Tanga City Council depends on fishing for a living, making it one of the main economic activities that people engage in.

Small pelagic are prepared for sale to consumers domestically and in big quantities are exported to the Democratic Republic of the Congo by being pickled and salted.

The city has a strategic geographic location that gives it a competitive business advantage because it is situated on the Indian Ocean and close to the Kenyan border.

Tanga Airport, located in the heart of the city, offers air service to other urban and tourist destinations across the nation.

Sisal from the hinterland, coffee from the Kilimanjaro and Arusha regions, tea from Amani, and cotton from Lushoto are among the main exports from the port of Tanga.

others are Pallet Manufacturers Ltd, Pembe Floor Mills, Polishes Manufacturers, Rhino Cement Company, Sandali Wood Industries Ltd, Silver General Distributor Co. Ltd, Star Salt Ltd, Tanga Cement Company Ltd and Tanga Fresh Ltd (Milk).

[33] Tanga City Council has a small number of financial institution branches that serve the community.

[45] In Tanga City Council, the top ten causes of admission for patients older than five years old in 2020–21 were gynecological disorders (1,437; 23.39%), fractures (998; 16.25%), hypertension (713; 11.61%), HIV infections (622; 10.13%), and UTI (538; 8.76%).

Traffic accidents made up 443 (7.21%), followed by diabetes (7.5%), anemia (6.02%), peptic ulcers (5.42%), and other febrile illnesses (4.17%) in that order.