Tongren is made up of 3 towns and 8 townships: The Amdo Tibetan is the lingua franca of Tongren and the surrounding region, which is populated by Tibetan and Hui people, as well as some Han Chinese and Mongols.

[3] The Wutun language, a Chinese-Bonan-Tibetan mixed language, is spoken by some 2,000 people in the two villages of Upper and Lower Wutun, located on the eastern bank of the Rongwo River.

[3] The city has a number of Tibetan Buddhist temples and gompas, including the large and significant Rongwo Monastery of the Gelug school.

Regong arts were named on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists in 2009.

"[4] Tongren has a highland humid continental climate (Köppen Dwb).