The Sahyadri mountain range or The Satnala range traverses the district from the northwest to the southeast for about 281.5 Kms. In this range The Mahbub Ghat is the highest peak. They are many hills and hillocks of minor importance in the eastern part of the district.

The most important river that drains the district is the River Godavari. The Penganga, The Wardha, and The Pranahita Rivers are also significant. The Kadam and The Peddavagu rivers are tributaries of River Godavari. Besides these, there are also rivulets like the Satnala, the Swarna vagu, and the Suddavagu, which drain the district. River Godavari, the largest river in peninsular India originates in the Western Ghats at Trambakeshwar near Nasik in Maharastra state and enters this district near Basara in Mudhole Taluk. This mighty river forms the boundary of the district separating the district from Nizamabad and Karimnagar districts and skirts the southern borders of Chennur, Luxettipet, Khanaapur, Nirmal and Mudhole taluks.River Penganga forms part of the northern boundary of the district in Adilabad , while the wardha and the Pranahita from the northern and eastern boundaries of the district , skirting Sirpur and chennur taluks respectively. The Kaddam River takes its origin at Bothai village in erstwhile Boath taluk flowing across this taluk and enters Khanapur at Paspula and finally converges into Godavari. The Peddawagu flows across the erstwhile taluks of Asifabad and Sirpur. The Satnala, Swarnavagu and Suddha Vagu Rivers flow across the said taluks of geologically important and rich in mineral resources.