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It is the main town in Stroud District.
Perched on the western escarpment of the Cotswold Hills, at the meeting point of the five Stroud Valleys, the town is notable for its steep streets. Historically, Stroud is a cloth town; power for woollen mills was provided by the small rivers which surge through the five valleys. Particularly noteworthy was the production of military uniforms in the trademark Stroudwater Scarlet colour.
There is still a small textile industry (the green baize cloth used to cover snooker tables is made here), but today, the town functions primarily as a centre for light engineering and small-scale manufacturing, and a provider of services for the surrounding villages. A bimonthly Farmers' Market, launched in 1999, was nominated for Farmers Market of the Year in 2001. Stroud railway station (on the Gloucester- Swindon line) was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
The town's most famous sons and residents are authors. Those born in the area, or who lived there while writing, include Laurie Lee, Jilly Cooper, Jasper Fforde and the Reverend Wilbert Vere Awdry. The Slad Valley, a little way outside the town, was the setting for the first part of Laurie Lee's autobiographical trilogy Cider With Rosie.