Gujrat, along with Fatehpur Sikri and Dipalpur, is one of the only three historical towns in the subcontinent which were actually planned prior to being built. But unlike Dipalpur, which was erected specifically to house the royal army, or Fatehpur Sikri which was conceived as the imperial capital, Gujrat was, from start, the people's town. Some five miles north of the meandering loops of Chenab, it sits atop a small mound clearly visible from the Grand Trunk Road. In the mound, apparently, are buried the remains of at least two older towns, the more recent of which is thought to have been destroyed by the Mongols in the time of Alauddin Khilji. The current town wass built at the command of the Moghal emperor Akbar, who built a thick wall around the town, garrisoned it with Gujars and named it Gujar Akbarabad. In the seventeenth century Gujrat was a thriving centre of trade and had a healthy tradition of craft. Gujrat was made district headquarter in 1849.

Gujrat stands tall among the political circles of the country. It has produced some of the finest politicians and political workers like Sir Fazal Ali, Choudhary Zahoor Ellahi, Choudhary Shujat Hussain, Choudhary Pervaiz Ellahi, Choudhary Ahmad Mukhtar, Mian Mushtaq Ahmad Pagganwala, Mian Imran Masood. Choudhary Fazal Ellahi was the President of Pakistan during 70s. Three brave sons of district Gujrat were honoured with the highest military award, the Nishan-i-Haider. These were Major Aziz Bhatti, Major Muhammad Akram and Major Shabbir Sharif. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan called it "Khitta-e-Yunan".

More than 300,000 people from Gujrat live overseas and contribute more than 3 billion rupees per year as foreign exchange. They are playing a vital role in economies of their host countries and are keenly interested in Gujrat affairs at all levels. People from all the three tehsils, Gujrat, Kharian and Sarai Alamgir represent Gujrat overseas.

Gujrat is also known in the world for its clay with which Gujratis produce quality pottery since ages. Apart from agriculture and clay the city is well known due to its furniture manufacturing skills. Gujratis have mastered the skills of conditioning the wood and producing world class furniture having immaculate finish. Over last few decades Gujrat has also attained a name in export of electric fans.

Gujrat has a unique status throughout the Punjab due to some of its manufacturing capabilities and productions. There are about 1,059 cottage level and small/medium/large scale industrial units operating in the district. Jalalpur Jattan is a large town of Gujrat, where several small and large textile industrial unit have been established. There are many other industrial units and factories engaged in manufacturing of electrical goods (Fan), Electric Motors, Earthen Utensils, Shoes, Rubber Tyre Tube, Sanitary Ware ,Rice Cleaning Mills and Furniture. The high quality furniture made here have been used in National and Provincial Assemblies.

The story of emergence of electric fan manufacturing industry in Pakistan is one of those heroic efforts made by a few enterprising individuals who, starting with nothing in early 1940s, struggled against all odds and turned this concern into a most efficient industry in Pakistan. This is an industry on which all Pakistanis can rightly be proud of. It does not owe its success to any foreign collaboration or any from the Government, but only to its own people whose constant research for maintaining good quality and devising new methods and techniques of production have now resulted in a product which we can rightfully claim as among the best in the world.

There are now over five hundred fan manufacturing units operating in Gujrat, Gujranwala, Lahore and a few other cities. Except for a few, the rest falls into the category of cottage industry. These small units from the real backbone of this industry. They provide employment to a large number of people and all put together account of more than 90 percent of the domestic market.