The district is elongated from west to east. A major part of the district belongs to the basins of the Mezen River (with the main tributaries the Pyoza and the Kimzha) and the Kuloy River (with the Nemnyuga and the Soyana), which both end up in the Mezen Bay of the White Sea. Areas on the White Sea coast drain directly into the sea, and some areas in the northeast of the district drain into the Pyosha River and other rivers of the Barents Sea basin.
