Baoding

Baoding
保定市
Paoting
Skyline of downtown
Ancient Lotus Pool
Former Zhili Governor's Office
Nickname: 
Boot-Shaped City (靴城)
Interactive map of Baoding
Baoding
Location of the city centre in Hebei
Baoding
Baoding (Northern China)
Baoding
Baoding (China)
Coordinates (Baoding municipal government): 38°52′26″N 115°27′50″E / 38.874°N 115.464°E / 38.874; 115.464
CountryPeople's Republic of China
ProvinceHebei
County-level divisions5 districts
4 county-level cities
15 counties
Township-level divisions28 subdistricts
142 towns
170 townships
3 ethnic townships
Settled477
Established1925
Municipal seatJingxiu District
Government
 • TypePrefecture level city
 • BodyBaoding City People's Congress
Area
22,185 km2 (8,566 sq mi)
 • Urban
326 km2 (126 sq mi)
 • Metro
1,840 km2 (710 sq mi)
Elevation
25 m (82 ft)
Highest elevation
2,286 m (7,500 ft)
Lowest elevation
7 m (23 ft)
Population
 (2020 census)
11,544,036
 • Density520.35/km2 (1,347.7/sq mi)
 • Urban
6,425,944
 • Urban density19,700/km2 (51,100/sq mi)
 • Metro
2,549,787
 • Metro density1,390/km2 (3,590/sq mi)
GDP
 • Prefecture-level cityCN¥ 408.7 billion
US$ 52.9 billion
 • Per capitaCN¥ 28,648
US$4,600
Time zoneUTC+8 (China Standard)
Postal code
071000
Area code0312
ISO 3166 codeCN-HE-06
License plate prefixes冀F
Websitewww.baoding.gov.cn
Baoding
Chinese保定
Literal meaning"protect (the capital) and stabilize (the territory)"
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinBǎodìng
Wade–GilesPao2-ting1
IPA[pàʊtîŋ]
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanizationbou2 ding6
JyutpingBou-ding
IPA[pɔw˧˥tɪŋ˨]

Baoding is a prefecture-level city in central Hebei province, approximately 150 kilometres (93 mi) southwest of Beijing. As of the 2020 census, Baoding City had 11,544,036 inhabitants, of which 2,549,787 lived in the metropolitan area made of 4 out of 5 urban districts: Lianchi, Jingxiu, Qingyuan, and Mancheng all of which are largely conurbated. Accounting for about one-sixth of the population of Hebei Province. At the end of 2024, the city's resident population is 9,046,200, of which the urban resident population is 5,527,200. Baoding is among 13 Chinese cities with a population of over 10 million, ranking seventh. Zhuozhou City in the northern part has now grown into part of the Beijing metro area.

Baoding was the capital of Zhili Province and the residence of the Viceroy of Zhili in the Qing dynasty. The city was also the capital of Hebei province until 1968, and is now a national historical and cultural city and one of the central cities in the Jing-Jin-Ji cluster, with the Xiong'an new area located within its jurisdiction.