Hongkou, Shanghai in the context of Broadway Mansions

Shanghai is one of the four direct-controlled municipalities of People's Republic of China, and is further divided into 16 districts. Seven of the administrative districts together make up Shanghai's "urban core", and there is no single "city centre" district amongst them, although Huangpu District contains most of the traditional city centre area of Shanghai. Today's Huangpu is the result of the mergers of three old districts: the original Huangpu District merged with Nanshi District in 2000, and in 2011 Luwan District also merged into Huangpu. Huangpu District is now the location of the municipal government headquarters, The Bund (the traditional financial district), and well-known shopping areas including Nanjing Road, Huaihai Road, and Xintiandi. Across the Huangpu River, Pudong includes Lujiazui, the financial center of Shanghai as well as China, and has been undergoing rapid development since its formation in 1992. In April 2009 Nanhui District was merged into Pudong. Other prominent business and shopping areas include Xujiahui in Xuhui District, Jing'an Temple in Jing'an District, Hongqiao in Changning District, Wujiaochang in Yangpu District, and North Sichuan Road in Hongkou District. Many universities in Shanghai are located in Yangpu, Minhang, and Songjiang Districts.

Seven of the districts are situated in Puxi (literally Huangpu West), or the older part of urban Shanghai on the west bank of the Huangpu River. These seven districts are collectively referred to as the "urban area" of Shanghai (上海市区) or the city centre (市中心). Additionally, Pudong New Area (on the east bank of the Huangpu River) is also included within the zone enclosed by the S20 Shanghai Outer Ring Expressway, and so is sometimes considered to be the eighth city centre district.

Jing'an District (静安区) is one of the central districts of Shanghai. In 2020, it had 975,707 inhabitants in an area of 37 km (14 sq mi).

The district borders the Hongkou to the east, Huangpu to the east and south, Putuo to the west, Baoshan District to the north and Changning to the west. On 4 November 2015, Zhabei merged with Jing'an District, bringing Shanghai down to 15 districts and one county.

Yangpu (Chinese: 杨浦区) is one of the 16 districts of Shanghai. It is located in the northeastern part of downtown Shanghai, bordering the Huangpu River on the east and south, Hongkou on the west, and Baoshan on the north. The southern part of Yangpu District is 4 km (2.5 mi) away from The Bund, a major tourist attraction. It is predominantly composed of residential communities, with a total area of 60.61 km (23.40 sq mi) and a population of 1,242,548 as of 2020. The district administers 12 subdistricts.