Suzhou (; Mandarin: ; Suzhou Wu: ), formerly romanized as Soochow, is a major city located in southeastern Jiangsu Province of East China, about northwest of Shanghai. It is a major economic centre and focal point of trade and commerce, and the second largest city in the province after its capital Nanjing. The city is situated on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and the shores of Lake Tai and belongs to the Yangtze River Delta region. Administratively, Suzhou is a prefecture-level city with a population of 4.33 million in its city proper, and a total resident population (as of 2013) of 10.58 million in its administrative area. Its urban population grew at an unprecedented rate of 6.5 etween 2000 and 2014, which is the highest among cities with more than 5 million people.

Suzhou formerly romanized as Suchow is a prefecture-level city in northern Anhui province. It borders the prefectural cities of Huaibei and Bengbu to the southwest and south respectively, the provinces of Jiangsu to the east, Shandong to the north, and Henan to the northwest.