Zitong County is a county in the northeast of Sichuan Province, China. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Mianyang. It has an area of 1,438 km², and a population of 380,000 in 2002. Its seat is 172 km from Chengdu, and 49 km from Mianyang. It was made a county as early as B.C. 285, in Qin Dynasty.