Baiyin is famous for mining and established for mining enterprises. It is the only city in the country named after a precious metal and enjoys the title "Copper City" in China.

Baiyin city governs three counties and two districts and has a total area of 21,200 km2. At the end of 2019, it had a permanent population of 1.75 million. The city is the hub of the Silk Road, the core of the Lanzhou-Baiyin metropolitan area, a resource-rich land with gold and treasure, a nationally renowned industrial land, a green and efficient agricultural base as well as a land of colorful tourist resorts. There are also many fascinating and amazing natural and cultural landscapes in Baiyin, such as the national geopark called Yellow River Stone Forest with the title of a "Chinese Natural Wonder", Huining County, the great victory meeting place of the Red Army Long March, Shoulu Mountain known as "Green Island of Desert", the Roman Holiday Lavender Manor in Jingyuan, the revolutionary ruins of the Hulabaokou Ferry famous for crossing the Yellow River, the revolutionary site of the battle of Talachi and so on. In 2018, Baiyin city was awarded as an "Outstanding Charming City" by CCTV.

In recent years, Baiyin has actively promoted the construction of the Lanzhou-Baiyin National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone and the Lanzhou-Baiyin Technology Innovation Reform Pilot Zone, intending to create an industry cluster development platform of "one district leads, six parks synchronize, and multiple points support". Meanwhile, Baiyin devoted itself to improving the incubation system. By the end of 2018 in Baiyin city, there were nine incubators under construction, one of them national and four provincial; 23 maker spaces, two of them national and seven provincial; 10 star creative worlds; 186 hatched companies and 418 development projects. As a result, Baiyin Technology Business Incubator has been assessed as an excellent (Class A) national technology business incubator by the Ministry of Science and Technology for three consecutive years.

Baiyin is located in a semi-arid climate area and is famous for the fruits that require abundant natural sunlight. Among all kinds of fruits, Black melon seeds, yellow river honeydew melon, pears of Jingtai county, honeydew melon of Lanzhou city, dry sand watermelons and jujubes of Xiaokou village are the most famous. What’s more, 29 Baiyin agricultural products have been certified as "Geographical Indication" agricultural products, such as flax oil from Huining couty, wolfberries from Jingyuan Couty, pears from Jingtai County, and black donkey from Pingchuan district. The tender and soft lamb of Jingyuan county is a unique local cuisine popular in the Gansu-Qinghai Region and other places. It has been served as a special main dish at state banquets in the past.