There is no difference in essence. It's just that Pu 'er is the current name of this area, which is Pu 'er City, Yunnan Province. Simao is the old name of Pu 'er, namely Simao area in Yunnan Province. Pu 'er City, once called Simao City, is a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of Yunnan Province, People's Republic of China (PRC). Pu 'er City covers a total area of 45,000 square kilometers and now governs 9 counties 1 districts. The municipal government is located in Simao Town, Simao District. By the end of 2022, the permanent population of the city was 2.37 million, including 26 ethnic groups including Han, Hani, Yi, Hui, Bai and Dai, among which the population of ethnic minorities was 6.5438+0.457 million.