Bečej was mentioned first in 1091. In the 15th century (from 1419 to 1441) it was a possession of the Serbian despot Đurađ Branković. Between 1702 and 1751, the town belonged to the Tisa-Mureş section of the Habsburg Military Frontier. After the abolishment of this part of the Frontier in 1751, many Serbs that lived in the town emigrated to Russia (notably to New Serbia and Slavo-Serbia). To prevent this emigration, the Habsburg authorities formed autonomous District of PotisjeHungarians to settle in the district. In the following period many Hungarians settled in Bečej and they replaced Serbs as a dominant nation in the town. According to the 1910 census, the population of Bečej municipality numbered 54,275 people, of whom 30,465 spoke Hungarian and 22,821 Serbian. with seat in Bečej. District of Potisje existed between 1751 and 1848. The three privilegies were given to the district in 1759, 1774, and 1800. First privilege of the District defined its autonomous status, while the second one allowed to ethnic

Since 1918, Bečej was part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and subsequent South Slavic states. During the Hungarian Axis occupation, in 1942 raid, 215 inhabitants of the town were murdered, of whom 111 were men, 72 women, 13 children, and 19 old people. By nationality, victims included 110 Jews, 102 Serbs, and 1 Hungarian. The town also had small ethnic German population, which fled from the area after World War II, as a consequence of the war events.