The Utah State Prison is located in Draper, near Point of the Mountain (alongside Interstate 15). The execution of Gary Gilmore took place here on January 24, 1977.

The winds on Traverse Ridge make it one of the world's best hang-gliding or paragliding spots.[citation needed]

In 2004, Draper citizens voted for a tax increase that would pay for the purchase of key pieces of property in the Corner Canyon area. The aim of this measure was to protect and preserve the Corner Canyon area for the future enjoyment of citizens of the city and the Salt Lake Valley area. In the fall of 2005, 1,021 acres (4.13 km2) of property were identified and purchased for the development of Corner Canyon Regional Park, which will consist of parks, trails and other recreation areas.

Draper is home to the main customer service center of eBay, the tech call center of PGP Corporation, the call center of Musician's Friend, and the headquarters of 1-800 Contacts. Draper is also home to Utah's first Ikea, which opened in Spring 2007. In August 2006, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints broke ground for a temple in Draper; it has since been finished and was dedicated on March 20, 2009.

Draper is located at 40°30′53″N 111°52′23″W / 40.51472°N 111.87306°W / 40.51472; -111.87306 (40.514843, -111.872940). It lies roughly midway between Salt Lake City and Provo.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 30.4 square miles (78.6 km²), of which, 30.3 square miles (78.6 km²) of it is land and 0.03% is water.

Draper shares city borders with Riverton and Bluffdale to the west, South Jordan to the northwest, Sandy to the north, Alpine to the southeast, Highland to the south, and Lehi to the southwest.

The racial makeup of the city was 91.25% White, 1.52% African American, 0.75% Native American, 1.30% Asian, 0.36% Pacific Islander, 2.71% from other races, and 2.10% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.82% of the population.

There were 6,305 households out of which 54.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 77.8% were married couples living together, 5.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.9% were non-families. 10.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.40 and the average family size was 3.69.

In the city the population was spread out with 32.0% under the age of 18, 11.2% from 18 to 24, 38.3% from 25 to 44, 14.8% from 45 to 64, and 3.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 129.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 141.9 males.