The name Rugao can be traced back to the wooden slips in The Book of Rites and the bamboo slips in Zuo Zhuan. According to Taiping Universe, "Rugao Port is fifty paces northwest of the county seat, and Rugao Village is on the port side, hence the name of the county seat."

Rugao City is located in the north wing of the Yangtze River Delta, with latitude 32 00 ′ ~ 32 30 ′ north and longitude120 20 ′ ~120 50 ′. It is adjacent to the Yangtze River in the south, across the river from Zhangjiagang City, bordering Hai 'an County in the north, Rudong County in the east, Tongzhou District of Nantong City in the southeast and Taixing City in the west.