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A 'sub-prefecture-level city' (副地級市), or 'vice-prefecture-level city', is an administrative division of China. A sub-prefecture-level city is officially considered to be a county-level city, but it has more power ''de facto'' because the cadres assigned to its government are all half a level higher than they normally would be, though still less than a prefecture-level city.
While county-level cities belong to prefecture-level divisions, sub-prefecture-levels are often administered directly by the province, with no intervening prefecture level.
Examples of sub-prefecture-level cities include Jiyuan (Henan province), Xiantao, Qianjiang and Tianmen (Hubei), Golmud (Qinghai), Manzhouli (Inner Mongolia), Shihanza, Tumushuk, Aral, and Wujiaqu (Xinjiang).