The coastal city of Yantai in East China's Shandong province has been included in the list of national model cities of social development five times in a row.

The assessment was made by the Central Supervisory Committee of Spiritual Civilization through a strict process of self-recommendation, recommendation by provincial governments, review by ministries, and public feedback.

In 2005, Yantai was among the first batch of national model cities. In 2009, the city retained the honorary title. In 2015, the city became the only city in Shandong to be included in the list.