With　the　rapid　development　of　Internet　of　Things　(IoT)　and　5G,　mobile　edge　computing　is　gaining　popularity　for　its　low　computation　latency,　bandwidth　costs　and　energy　consumption.　In　mobile　edge　computing,　the　placement　of　edge　servers　is　one　of　the　most　significant　problems　and　attracts　worldwide　attention.　However,　two　major　problems　of　edge　server　placement:　high　access　delay　and　unbalanced　workload　of　edge　servers,　have　not　been　completely　solved　yet.　To　better　solve　these　two　problems,　this　paper　proposes　a　new　Spectral-Clustering-based　Edge　Server　Placement　(SCESP)　algorithm,　which　can　effectively　reduce　the　access　delay　and　make　the　workload　of　each　edge　server　more　balanced.　In　the　evaluation,　we　use　the　Shanghai　Telecom’s　base　station　dataset　to　test　the　performance　of　SCESP　and　extensive　experiments　demonstrate　the　superior　performance　of　SCESP　in　reducing　the　access　delay　and　balancing　the　edge　server　workload.　©　2022,　The　Author(s),　under　exclusive　license　to　Springer　Nature　Switzerland　AG.