Tancheng County is subordinate to Linyi City of Shandong Province, located in the southernmost part of Shandong Province, at the junction of Lu-Su City, in the south of Pizhou, Xinyi and Donghai City of Jiangsu Province, and bordering on Linshu County, Hedong District, Luozhuang District and Lanling County of Linyi City in the north. It is an important communication artery between the South gate of Shandong Province, the land of Qilu and the Jianghuai region.

Tancheng was established in Tancheng County in the Xia and Shang Dynasties, and it evolved into Tancheng County in the Spring and Autumn Period. Tanjun was established in the Qin Dynasty, and it was renamed Donghai County in the Han Dynasty and Tancheng County in the Tang Dynasty. Tancheng had been the Tanjun County, Donghai County and the Shishi Department of Xuzhou and other prefectures of Tancheng County for a long time, and was the birthplace of ancient Xu culture.

Tancheng is one of the 100 big grain producing counties in the country, reputed as the "Grain Barn of South of Shandong", and was honored as the National Advanced County of Grain Production, the National Advanced County of Plain Greening, the National Advanced County of Culture, China's Excellent Eco-Tourism County, China's Famous Green County, the National Advanced County of Science and Technology Progress, the National Garden County, the Town of Ginkgo Biloba in China, and the Town of Willow in China.

In 2020, Tancheng County administered 16 towns and townships (subdistricts, development zones, and scenic spots), 114 rural communities, 11 urban communities, and 616 villages, with a total area of 1,195 square kilometers. According to the seventh census, as of midnight on November 1, 2020, the permanent resident population of Tancheng County was 885,156.

In 2020, Tancheng County's GDP reached 32.094 billion yuan, an increase of 3.1 percent.