The creation of the present municipality took place during the last of the two nation-wide municipal reforms carried out in Sweden during the second half of the 20th century. In 1969 a number of surrounding rural municipalities were merged with the City of Simrishamn. The enlarged city became a municipality of unitary type in 1971 and in 1974 more territory was added. The number of original entities (pre-1952) is twenty.
The landscape south and west of Simrishamn is mainly open and very flat farmland, in most places you can see for several miles in all directions. To the north of Simrishamn the landscape is broken up by small forests and gently sloping hills. The coastline directly south and north of Simrishamn is stony to a great degree, but turns into broad beaches with white sand further away. The scenic Stenshuvud National Park is located by the shore, within the municipal borders, and is one of the geographically more fascinating places in Scania. Simrishamn is located in the Österlen area.
Localities
There are 13 urban areas (also called a Tätort or locality) in Simrishamn Municipality. In the table they are listed according to the size of the population as of December 31, 2005. The municipal seat is in bold characters.