It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Kymenlaaksoregion. The municipality had a population of 1,906 (2003) and covered an area of 563.06 km² of which 129.89 km² was water. The population density was 3.4 inhabitants per km².
As of 2009, the six municipalities – Kouvola, Kuusankoski, Elimäki, Anjalankoski, Valkeala and Jaala – were consolidated, accounting for the new municipality of Kouvola with a population of over 80,000, being the 10th largest city in Finland.