Greenwood is a city in and the county seat of Greenwood County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 23,222 at the 2010 census. The city is home to Lander University.

Spartanburg is a city in and the seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States, and the 12th-largest city by population in the state. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 37,013, and Spartanburg County has an urban population of 180,786 as of the 2010 census. For a time, the Office of Management and Budget grouped Spartanburg and Union Counties together as the "Spartanburg Metropolitan Statistical Area", but as of 2018 the OMB defines only Spartanburg County as the Spartanburg MSA.Spartanburg is the second-largest city in the greater Greenville–Spartanburg–Anderson Combined Statistical Area, which has a population of 1,385,045 as of 2014. It is part of a 10-county region of northwestern South Carolina known as "The Upstate," and is located 98 miles (158 km) northwest of Columbia, 80 miles (130 km) west of Charlotte, North Carolina, and about 190 miles (310 km) northeast of Atlanta, Georgia. Spartanburg is the home of Wofford College, Converse College, and Spartanburg Community College, and the area is home to USC Upstate and Spartanburg Methodist College. It is also the site of headquarters for Denny's.

The Upstate is the region in the westernmost part of South Carolina, United States, also known as the Upcountry, which is the historical term. Although loosely defined among locals, the general definition includes the ten counties of the commerce-rich I-85 corridor in the northwest corner of South Carolina. This definition coincided with the Greenville–Spartanburg–Anderson, SC Combined Statistical Area, as first defined by the Office of Management and Budget in 2015. In 2018, the OMB redefined the CSA such that it no longer included Abbeville County. That definition remains as of 2020. The region's population was 1,347,112 as of 2016. Situated between Atlanta and Charlotte, the Upstate is the geographical center of the Charlanta mega-region. After BMW's initial investment, foreign companies, including others from Germany, have a substantial presence in the Upstate; several large corporations have established regional, national, or continental headquarters in the area. Greenville is the largest city in the region with a population of 72,227 and an urban-area population of 400,492, and it is the base of most commercial activity. Spartanburg and Anderson are next in population.

Greenville (; locally ) is a city in and the seat of Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. With an estimated population of 70,635 as of 2019, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. Greenville is located approximately halfway between Atlanta, Georgia, and Charlotte, North Carolina, along Interstate 85, and its metropolitan area also includes Interstates 185 and 385. Greenville was the fourth fastest-growing city in the United States between 2015 and 2016, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.The population of the surrounding area was 400,492 as of 2010, making it the third-largest urban area in South Carolina as well as the fastest growing. Greenville is the largest city in the Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The MSA had a population of 920,477 in 2019, making it the largest in South Carolina and the third largest in the Carolinas. Greenville is the largest city in the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson Combined Statistical Area, a 10-county region of northwestern South Carolina known as "The Upstate". According to United States Census Bureau, the CSA had a population of 1,475,235 as of 2019, making it the largest CSA in the state.