[7] The North Korean military detonated its second nuclear test in May 2009 close to the Chinese border, and the blast set off an earthquake of magnitude 4.5 with an epicenter only 112 mi (180 km) from Yanji.

Yanji had registered nearly 2100 drug addicts in 2010 compared to just 44 in 1990; local officials admitted that the actual number was possibly five or six times higher.

The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from −13.2 °C (8.2 °F) in January to 21.7 °C (71.1 °F) in August, while the annual mean is 5.69 °C (42.2 °F) and a total precipitation of 531 mm (20.9 in), most of it falling during the summer.

[22] Official census reports from 2000 have not yet been released publicly,[21] but current estimates place it between about one third of the city's total population[15][23] to more than one half.

[28] China is the largest trading partner of North Korea, accounting for almost 40% of that country's international commerce, and Yanji is the center of much of the cross-border enterprise.

[24] Much of the recent investment has been made by South Korea[29][30] and Taiwan, which has helped substantially in building the city's tourism industry.

Held every year since 1996, the fair is one of the largest of its kind in the country, showcasing over a thousand exhibitions representing cultural and economic partners from across China and overseas.

[31] Yanji also hosts the Tumen River Area International Investment & Business Forum, a three-day exposition held annually since 2000.

[7] A much shorter trip to the Chinese capital can be arranged at Yanji Chaoyangchuan International Airport which serves the area with scheduled passenger flights domestically and to Korea.

[37] One of Yanbian University's graduates, a Korean language major, is Zhang Dejiang, formerly a deputy secretary of the Municipal Committee of Yanji (1983–1985), and now a Vice-Premier of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing.

[24] Karaoke is popular in Yanji,[30]: 35  and the city even has a burgeoning underground beatboxing scene, which has been documented by filmmaker Liu Feng in Yan Bian Box (2007).

It has beautiful natural scenery, rich Korean culture, the majestic Changbai Mountain to the south, and the summer resort Jingbo Lake to the north.

[50] Places such as China Korean Folk Garden, Yanbian University Internet Celebrity Wall, and Floating Market have become popular travel destinations.

Tourists’ experience activities in Yanji have also expanded from simply viewing the scenery, tasting food, and appreciating folk customs to visiting the local morning market and wearing traditional costumes.