It is dominated by the Bazum mountains from the north and Pambak mountains from the south. Spitak is characterized with extremely cold winter and mild summer. The annual precipitation level reaches up to . Spitak has a population of ethnic Armenians who belong to the Armenian Apostolic Church. The regulating body of the church is the Diocese of Gougark, seated in Vanadzor. The church of Holy Resurrection opened in 2001 is the town's church. At the beginning of the 19th century, many Armenian migrants from Khoy and Muş who were resettled in the town. In December 1988, around 4,000 people were killed in Spitak as a result of the devastating earthquake. Upon the breakout of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1988, around 500 Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan were resettled in Spitak. Here is the population timeline of Spitak since 1831:  Spitak has a cultural house, 3 public libraries, many cinema theatres, a municipal theater, and an ethnographic museum. The cultural heritage of the town includes an archaeological site from the 2nd millennium BC, the ruins of an ancient settlement on the nearby Sardar hill from the 1st millennium BC, as well as a bridge on the Pambak river dating back to the 19th century. The "Spitak day" is celebrated every year on July the 15th. Spitak is an important hub for transportation in Armenia. The M-3 Motorway that connects Yerevan with Tbilisi passes through the town. The M-7 Motorway the connects Gyumri with Vanadzor starts from Spitak. The town is also home to the Spitak railway station, almost midway between Yerevan and Tbilisi. Under the Soviet rule, Spitak became a major industrial hub in northern Armenia. The Spitak dairy factory was opened in 1937, while the sugar factory was opened in 1947. However, after the earthquake, the town lost its significance as an industrial centre in Lori. The town has a flour mill and a building materials manufacturing plant. In 2015, Spitak had 7 public education schools, one boarding school and 7 kindergartens. The town is also home to a musical academy and a school of art. A branch of the Yerevan electro-technical intermediate college is also operating in the town. Football is the most popular sport in the town. FC Spitak represented the town in the domestic competitions between 1990 and 1998. However, like most Armenian football teams, the club was dissolved in 1999 due to financial difficulties.