Yonkers is the fourth most populous city in the state of New York (behind New York City, Buffalo and Rochester), and the most populous city in Westchester County, with a population of 196,086 (according to the 2000 census), and an estimated 2008 population of 201,588. Yonkers borders the New York City borough of The Bronx and is 2 miles (3 km) north of Manhattan at the cities' two respective closest points.

The city is home to several attractions: the Hudson River Museum, the Sherwood House, the Science Barge, Cross County Shopping Center, Yonkers Raceway, and a harness racing track that has renovated its grounds and clubhouse and added legalized video slot machine gambling in 2006 in a "racino" called Empire City. There are also many large shopping areas along Central Park Avenue (NY 100), informally called "Central Ave" by area residents, a name it takes officially a few miles north in White Plains, New York.