The source of the river is Lake Biwa in Shiga Prefecture to the north.

It serves as a source of water for irrigation and also powers hydroelectric generators.

The choice of the ancient capital Heian-kyō (now Kyoto) during the Heian period, was partly chosen because of the presence of the Yodo river that flows towards Osaka, and its outlet on the Seto Inland Sea.

The river played a very important role for the movement and transport of goods between Osaka and Kyoto, until the arrival of the first trains in the 1870s.

In 1858, it is estimated there were 50 boats daily of all types that carried about 1,500 people from Osaka to Fushimi.