It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Etelä-Pohjanmaa region. The municipality has a population of 7133 and covers an area of 908,7 km² of which 103,33 km² is water. The population density is 8,7661 inhabitants per km².
The municipality is unilingual Finnish.
Ähtäri is known for its zoo.
See also: Municipalities of Western Finland