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A majority of the people of Nagapattinam are employed in sea-borne trading, fishing, agriculture and tourism. Kayarohanaswami Temple, Nagapattinam and Soundararajaperumal Temple, Nagapattinam are the major Hindu pilgrimage sites. Nagapattinam is the base for tourism for Sikkal Singaravelan Temple, Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health, Poompuhar, Point Calimere, Vedaranyam, Mannargudi and Tharangambadi. Roadways is the major mode of transport to Nagapattinam, while the city also has rail and sea transport.

''Nagapattinam'' is derived from ''Nagar'' referring to people from Sri Lanka who settled here and ''pattinam'' referring to town. It was also called ''Cholakula Vallipattinam'' during the period of Kulottunga I, when it was one of the important ports. Ptolemy refers to Nagapattinam as Nikam and mentions it as one of the most important trade centres of the ancient Tamil country. This view is doubtful as there are no contemporary evidences to prove the existence of a metropolis in the name of "Nikama"

"Nikam". Nagapattinam was referred by early writers and the Portugal as "the city of Coromandel Coast". Appar and Tirugnanasambandar, the 7th-century saint poets refer to the city as ''Nagai'' in their verses in ''Tevaram''. The town was originally called "Nagai" and the word ''Pattinam'' was attached during the Chola era when it emerged as an important port.

There are urn burials in and around the city from the Sangam period indicating some level of human habitation. Except the mention in Ptolemy as 'Νίγαμα Μετρόπολις,' there are no direct references to Nagapattinam during the 3rd century BCE to 3rd century CE. The neighbouring port, Kaveripoompattinam (modern day Poompuhar), was the capital of the Chola kingdom of the Sangam Age, referred to widely in Tamil scriptures like ''Paṭṭiṉappālai''.

The early works of ''Tevaram'' by the 7th-century poets Appar and Tirugnanasambandar mention the town had fortified walls, busy road building and a busy port. The inscriptions from the Kayarohanswami temple indicate the construction was initiated during the reign of the Pallava king, Narasimhavarman II (691-729 CE). A Buddhist pagoda was built under Chinese influence by the Pallava king and the town was frequented by Buddhist travellers. Thirumangai Alvar, the 9th century vaishnavite saint poet, is believed to have stolen the golden Buddha statue to fund the Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam at Srirangam; the authenticity of the theory is questionable.

In the 11th century CE, Chudamani Vihara, a Buddhist monastery, was built by the Sailendra king of Srivijaya Sri Mara Vijayattungavarman with the patronage of Rajaraja Chola I. It was named ''Chudamani''

''Chulamani'' Vihara after the king Sri Mara's father Nagapattinam was the prominent port of Cholas for trade and a conquering gateway to the east.

In the early 16th century the Portuguese made commercial contacts with the town and established a commercial centre in 1554 CE. The Portuguese also conducted missionary enterprise here. In 1658, the Dutch made an agreement with King Vijaya Nayakkar of Thanjavur on 5 January 1662, by which ten villages were transferred from the Portuguese to the Dutch — Nagapattinam Port, Puthur, Muttam, Poruvalancheri, Anthanappettai, Karureppankadu, AzhingiMangalam, Sangamangalam, Thiruthinamangalam, Manjakollai, Nariyankudi. Ten Christian churches and a hospital were built by the Dutch. They released Pagoda (coin) with the name Nagapattinam engraved in Tamil. As per agreement between the first Maratta King Egoji of Thanjavur and the Dutch, Naagapattinam and surrounding villages were handed over to the Dutch on 30 December 1676. In 1690, the capital of Dutch Coromandel changed from Pulicat to Nagapattinam.

This town fell into the hands of the British in 1781 after the two naval battles between British and French fleets were fought off the coast of Negapatam, as it was then known: the Battle of Negapatam (1758) as part of the Seven Years' War and the Battle of Negapatam (1782) as part of the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War. The town was Siege of Negapatam from the Dutch in 1781 (who had been Fourth Anglo-Dutch War in 1780). When the Dutch and British Treaty of Paris (1784), Nagapattinam was formally ceded to the British. 277 villages, with Nagore as the headquarters, were handed over to the East India Company.

From 1799 to 1845 Nagapttinam was the headquarters of Tanjore district. Nagapattinam and Nagore were incorporated as a single municipality in 1866. The town remained one of the chief ports to the Madras Presidency. The port suffered decline after the inclusion of Tranquebar and Tuticorin ports. After India's independence, Sirkazhi continued to be a part of Thanjavur district until 1991, and later became part of the newly created Nagapattinam district. Nagapattinam was severely affected by the tsunami which followed the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.

Image:Permanent Shelter for Tsunami Affected- Nagapattinam- India.JPGNagapattinam lies at . The town is bounded by Bay of Bengal in the east, Uppanar river in the south, Thiruvarur district in the west, Thanjavur District in the north west and Karaikkal & Puducherry in the north. The town lies in the sea level. The municipality covers an area of Nagapattinam is situated at a distance of from Chennai, from Karaikal, from Mayiladuthurai, from Kumbakonam, from Thanjavur and from Thiruvarur. The town receives an annual rainfall of . Nagapattinam has a tropical climate during the summer months of March to May. The proximity to the sea results in a high humidity throughout the year, which reaches 70% during August to May. The town has a plain terrain of alluvial soil consisting of sand, silt and clay. Vettar River, the tributaries of river Cauvery are the major water bodies. Rice#Harvesting, drying and milling is the major crop in the region, followed by groundnut, pulses, sugarcane, cotton and sesame. The town is one of the cyclone-prone zones and was devastated during the 2004 tsunami. A very fine layer of high saline soil was deposited in the paddy fields.

The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an submarine earthquake megathrust earthquake that on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, which triggered a series of devastating tsunamis along the coasts of most landmasses bordering the Indian Ocean. Nagapattinam district was the most affected part in Tamil Nadu, accounting for 6,064 off the 8,009 casualties in the state. A large number of the casualties were from the fishing community, who resided close to the seashore especially Akkaraipattai, Keenchankupam . The property losses impacted the fishing industry, as most of the boats were damaged by the inundation. The immediate aftermath created a lull in tourism.

According to 2011 census of India, Nagapattinam had a population of 102,905 with a sex-ratio of 1,026 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929. A total of 11,884 were under the age of six, constituting 6,089 males and 5,795 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 8.67% and 0.62% of the population respectively. The average literacy of the town was 78.74%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. The town had 24688 households. There were 33,532 workers, comprising 209 cultivators, 320 main agricultural labourers, 605 in house hold industries, 29,875 other workers, 2,523 marginal workers, 35 marginal cultivators, 130 marginal agricultural labourers, 64 marginal workers in household industries and 2,294 other marginal workers. As per the religious census of 2011, Nagapattinam had 71.4% Hindus, 24.79% Muslims, 3.68% Christians, 0.01% Sikhs, 0.02% Buddhists, 0.01% Jainism and 0.08% following other religions.

The decadal growth rate was higher during the decade ending in 1981, due to an increase in the town limits from to . The overall growth rate has declined over the period due to migration of people to other urban centres. There are 40 slums in the town as of 2001, with an estimated 44% residing in these slums. Out of 40 slums, 14 were affected by the 2004 tsunami. With the help of grant schemes and tsunami assistance programmes, these were rebuilt to tsunami-proof houses.

The main occupation of Nagapattinam is fishing in the waters of Bay of Bengal. The fish are sold in the daily and weekly fish markets in the town. There is a large number of ice factories for preserving the fish. The industry suffered a setback after the tsunami that struck the coast on 26 December 2004.

There is limited agricultural activity, but much agricultural commerce is conducted in the town. A majority of the people are employed in service industry, belonging to the tertiary sector. The town is also the centre of retail provisions trading for the towns and villages surrounding Nagapattinam.

Tourism is a major economic driver with the presence of heritage and historic points like Nagore, Velankanni, Sikkal, Point Calimere, Vedaranyam, Mannargudi and Tharangambadi.

There is limited industrial activity — the major industries are household, tailoring, embroidery, plastic wire and metal manufacturing. Cauvery Basin Refinery, a subsidiary of Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL) is near Nagapattinam. Established in 1993, it is a major contributor to the economy of the town. The development of industries is constrained by the town being linear and by the applicability of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) regulations that prevent large-scale construction and industrial buildings.

All major List of banks in India#Nationalized Banks such as State Bank of India, Indian Bank, Central Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and private banks like ICICI Bank, City Union Bank have branches in Nagapattinam. All these banks have their automated teller machines located in various parts of the town.

Nagapattinam municipality accommodates of roads; of cement roads, of bituminous roads, of WBM roads and of earthen roads. Nagapattinam is connected by two national highways, NH 45A to Villupuram and NH 67 to Coimbatore and Gundlupete in Karnataka state. Nagapattinam is connected with Chennai, Vellore, Coimbatore, Tiruchirapalli, Karaikal and other major towns of Tamil Nadu through the state highways SH 22 from Grand Anaicut to Kaveripoompattinam, SH 23 from Mayiladuthurai to Thiruthuraipoondi, SH 64 from Kumbakonam to Sirkazhi, SH 67 from Nagore to Nachiyar Koil, SH 147 from Kumbakonam to Karaikkal, SH 148 from Nagore to Vettar. SH 149 from Sembanarkoil to Nalladai, SH 150 from Vaitheeswarankoil to Lower Anaicut and SH 151 from Kilvelur to Kachanam. The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation operates close to 175 daily services connecting various cities to Nagapattinam. Most of the buses via Nagapattinam operated by the corporation ply between Trichy and Velankanni. The corporation operates a computerised reservation centre in the municipal bus stand of Nagapattinam. It operates 25 town buses satisfying the local transport needs of Nagapattinam and the neighbouring villages. The State Express Transport Corporation (Tamil Nadu) operates long distance buses connecting Nagapattinam to Bangalore, Thiruvananthapuram and Marthandam.

Great South Indian Railway Company (GSIR) had its headquarters at Nagapattinam between 1861 and 1875. A broad gauge railway [BG] line was operated between Nagapattinam and via , between 1861 and 1875. During 1875 it was converted into a meter gauge (MG) line. The GSIR headquarters was shifted to Tiruchirapalli during 1875. The railway workshop was at Negapatnam till 1929 and contributed to the growth of the town. It was also moved to Golden rock [Ponmalai] during 1929. connects in the west, in the north and in the south. There are passenger trains to , , , , and . There is a daily express train to via and via (Tea Garden Express). There are two triweekly trains from to (Pamani Express) and to (Goa) (Vasco Velankanni Express) that pass via .

The port of Nagapattinam is in the Bay of Bengal in the mouth of river Kuduvayyar. Nagapattinam was the most important port of the Chola empire. All the eastern naval expeditions of Rajendra Chola I (1012-44 CE) were through the port. The port was widely used by the Netherlands, Portugal and United Kingdom as one of the major ports of the Coramandel Coast for trading purposes. Most of the principal exports to Sri Lanka from the port during the British period were rice, piece goods, livestock, cigars, tobacco and hides. The trade of Nagapattinam was mostly with Sri Lanka, Straits Settlements, Burma and to a small extent to the United Kingdom and Spain. The port also served passenger traffic to Singapore, but this was susepended due to a fire accident. The modern day port has a commercial port complex and a dockyard that are protected by a river mouth sand bar facing the port. The port handles only a limited amount of edible oil imports. The Nagapttinam lighthouse is the first conventional lighthouse tower, built inside the port premises by the British in 1869. The port and the lighthouse are maintained by the Tamil Nadu Maritime Board under the Government of India.

The nearest Airport is Tiruchirapalli Airport, located away from the town.

Tourism plays a key economic role for the town, even though fishing is the major occupation. Nagapttinam is a base for heritage and historic points like Nagore, Velankanni, Sikkal, Kodiyakkarai, Vedaranyam, Mannargudi and Tharangambadi.

Kayarohanaswami Temple, Nagapattinam is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva. The temple has been in existence from the 6th century CE and has been revered by the verses of ''Tevaram'', the 7th-8th century Saiva canonical work by Appar, Campantar and Sundarar. The temple is one of the seven temples of the Thyagaraja cult, classified as ''Saptha Vidangam'', where the presiding deity Thyagaraja is believed to portray different dance styles. The temple is also known for the shrine of Neelayadakshi, the consort of Kayarohanaswami.

Soundararajaperumal Temple, Nagapattinam is a Hindu temple in the town dedicated to Vishnu. It is one of the Divya Desams, the 108 temples of Vishnu revered in ''Nalayira Divya Prabandham'' by Thirumangai Azhwar, one of the 12 poet saints called Azhwars belonging to the 6th-9th century.

Nagapattinam is base to some of the prominent Hindu temples like Sikkal Singaravelan Temple at Sikkal, Vedaranyeswarar Temple at Vedaranyam, Ettukudi Murugan Temple and Koothanur Maha Saraswathi Temple.

Nagore Durgha, a 16th-century minaret located in Nagore, is one of the important pilgrimage centres of the town. Kanduri festival is a 14-day event celebrated for the annual ''urs''(anniversary) of the saint Hajrath Shahul Hamid (1490-1579 CE), in honor of whom the minaret was built. The festival is celebrated in commemoration of the anniversary of the saint's death, and pilgrims from various religions participate in the rituals and rites. The festival is also seen as a sacred exchange between Hindus and Muslims expressing solidarity of mixed faith in the region. It is believed that 60 percent of the shrines were built by Hindus and historically the minaret garners many domestic and international visitors. There are three other prominent mosques; one near Nagai Pudhur Road, one near the new bus stand, and another at Moolakadai Street.

Velankanni is a pilgrimage centre located from Nagapattinam. The town is known for the Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health, a Roman Catholic church built during the 17th century. Pilgrimage to the basilica is common during September when people of many faiths, especially Hindus, Muslims and Christians of all denominations visit the basilica. The town has four prominent churches; the Lourdhu Madha (Sindhathurai Madha) Church, the Madharasi Madha Church, T.E.L.C. Church and the Protestant Church.

)St. Joseph's College, Tiruchirappalli, opened in Nagapattinam in 1846 and transferred to Tiruchirappalli in 1883, is one of the oldest higher educational institutions in India.Nagapattinam has 12 elementary schools, 8 high schools and 7 higher secondary schools. There are 2 arts and science colleges, one engineering college, 2 polytechnic colleges and one industrial training institute (ITI) in the town.

The electricity supplied to the town is regulated and distributed by the Nagapattinam circle of Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB). The water supply is provided by the Nagapattinam Municipality, through borewells from Vettar river — the distribution is done through pumping stations located at Kurukathi, Andipalayam and Solomon Park. About 55 metric tonnes of solid waste are collected from the town every day. Nagapattinam municipality does not have an underground drainage system and the current sewerage system for disposal of sullage is through septic tanks and public conveniences. The storm water drainage system is made up of the natural river drainage and man-made storm water drains.

Nagapattinam comes under the Nagapattinam telecom circle of the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), India's state-owned telecom and internet services provider. Apart from telecom, BSNL provides broadband internet service. There are six government hospitals in the town, with the largest being the District Government Hospital. There are 28 other private hospitals, clinics, and medical shops.

Nagapattinam comes under the Nagapattinam (State Assembly Constituency) constituency and it elects a member to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly every five years. From the 1977 elections, the assembly seat was won by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) once during the 1996 elections, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) twice during the 1991 and 2001 elections, and Communist Party of India (Marxist) five times during the 1977, 1980, 1984, 1989 and 2006 elections. The current MLA of the constituency is K. A. Jayapal, the minister for fisheries in the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Nagapattinam is a part of the Nagapattinam (Lok Sabha constituency) — it has the following six assembly constituencies — Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Thiruthuraipundi (State Assembly Constituency), Vedaranyam (State Assembly Constituency), Kilvelur (State Assembly Constituency) and Nannilam (State Assembly Constituency). The current Member of Parliament from the constituency is Dr. K. Gopal from the AIADMK party. From 1957, the Nagapattinam parliament seat was held by the Indian National Congress for five times during 1957-1961, 1962-67, 1967-71, 1991-96, and 1996-98 elections. CPI won the seat for five times during 1971-77, 1977-80, 1989-91, 1996-98 and 1998 elections. DMK won four times during 1980-84, 1999-2004, 2004-09 and 2009 elections. AIADMK won the seat twice during the 1984-89 elections and 2014 elections.

Law and order in the town in maintained by the Nagapattinam sub division of the Tamil Nadu Police headed by a Deputy Superintendent (DSP). There are three police stations in the town, one of them being an all-women police station. There are special units like prohibition enforcement, district crime, social justice and human rights, district crime records and special branch that operate at the district level police division headed by a Superintendent of Police (SP).