Stein is a municipality and a town in the southeastern Netherlands. The municipality had a population of 24,875 in 2021 and covers an area of 22.80 km2 (8.80 sq mi) of which 1.72 km2 (0.66 sq mi) is water.

South Limburg is both a COROP (statistical) region as well as a landstreek (area) of the Netherlands located in the province of Limburg. The Dutch term landstreek, literally translated "land area/region", means that the area is not an administrative region but an area that displays cohesion with regard to culture and landscape. With regards to South Limburg this deals with its hilly landscape, especially in the Heuvelland region, sunken lanes, an abundance of castles, and the regional language Limburgish spoken by a significant part of the population alongside Dutch. The region also contains the highest point above sea level in mainland Netherlands, the Vaalserberg being 322.5 metres (1,058 ft) above sea level.