Ranked: The World’s Largest Countries by Land Area
Key Takeaways
- The five largest countries, Russia, China, the U.S., Canada, and Brazil, account for about 40% of the world’s land area.
- The U.S. and Canada together cover more land than all of South America combined.
- Africa is home to 21 of the world’s 50 largest countries by land area, more than any other region.
A handful of countries occupy a remarkable share of the planet’s land. Russia alone accounts for 12.6% of the global total, while China and the U.S. each account for roughly 7%.
Some of the rankings may be surprising. The U.S. narrowly surpasses Canada when inland water is excluded, while Australia has more than twice the land area of India.
Using World Bank data, this graphic ranks the world’s 50 largest countries by land area, excluding inland water bodies.
The Largest Countries Pull Away From the Rest
The gap between the largest countries and the rest is steep. Australia, ranked sixth, is nearly three times larger than India in seventh place.
Taken together, the five largest countries occupy more land than the next 27 countries combined.
| Rank | Country | Land Area (mi²) | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Russia | 6,323,142 | 12.6% |
| 2 | China | 3,624,807 | 7.2% |
| 3 | U.S. | 3,531,837 | 7.0% |
| 4 | Canada | 3,393,335 | 6.8% |
| 5 | Brazil | 3,227,095 | 6.4% |
| 6 | Australia | 2,969,904 | 5.9% |
| 7 | India | 1,147,955 | 2.3% |
| 8 | Argentina | 1,056,641 | 2.1% |
| 9 | Kazakhstan | 1,042,360 | 2.1% |
| 10 | Algeria | 919,595 | 1.8% |
| 11 | DR Congo | 875,313 | 1.7% |
| 12 | Saudi Arabia | 830,000 | 1.7% |
| 13 | Mexico | 750,563 | 1.5% |
| 14 | Indonesia | 730,719 | 1.5% |
| 15 | Sudan | 721,239 | 1.4% |
| 16 | Libya | 679,362 | 1.4% |
| 17 | Iran | 626,450 | 1.3% |
| 18 | Mongolia | 601,740 | 1.2% |
| 19 | Peru | 494,211 | 1.0% |
| 20 | Niger | 489,075 | 1.0% |
| 21 | Chad | 486,180 | 1.0% |
| 22 | Angola | 481,353 | 1.0% |
| 23 | Mali | 471,118 | 0.9% |
| 24 | South Africa | 468,376 | 0.9% |
| 25 | Ethiopia | 435,716 | 0.9% |
| 26 | Colombia | 428,380 | 0.9% |
| 27 | Bolivia | 418,264 | 0.8% |
| 28 | Mauritania | 397,955 | 0.8% |
| 29 | Egypt | 384,345 | 0.8% |
| 30 | Nigeria | 351,650 | 0.7% |
| 31 | Tanzania | 342,009 | 0.7% |
| 32 | Venezuela | 340,561 | 0.7% |
| 33 | Namibia | 317,874 | 0.6% |
| 34 | Mozambique | 303,623 | 0.6% |
| 35 | Pakistan | 297,638 | 0.6% |
| 36 | Türkiye | 297,156 | 0.6% |
| 37 | Zambia | 287,024 | 0.6% |
| 38 | Chile | 286,809 | 0.6% |
| 39 | Myanmar | 251,997 | 0.5% |
| 40 | Afghanistan | 251,827 | 0.5% |
| 41 | South Sudan | 243,989 | 0.5% |
| 42 | Somalia | 242,217 | 0.5% |
| 43 | Central African Republic | 240,534 | 0.5% |
| 44 | Madagascar | 224,634 | 0.4% |
| 45 | Kenya | 224,278 | 0.4% |
| 46 | Ukraine | 223,707 | 0.4% |
| 47 | Botswana | 218,816 | 0.4% |
| 48 | France | 208,090 | 0.4% |
| 49 | Yemen | 203,850 | 0.4% |
| 50 | Thailand | 197,256 | 0.4% |
| 51 | Spain | 192,934 | 0.4% |
| 52 | Cameroon | 182,514 | 0.4% |
| 53 | Turkmenistan | 181,441 | 0.4% |
| 54 | Papua New Guinea | 174,850 | 0.3% |
| 55 | Morocco | 172,317 | 0.3% |
| 56 | Uzbekistan | 170,136 | 0.3% |
| 57 | Iraq | 167,618 | 0.3% |
| 58 | Greenland | 158,476 | 0.3% |
| 59 | Sweden | 157,248 | 0.3% |
| 60 | Paraguay | 152,901 | 0.3% |
| 61 | Zimbabwe | 149,364 | 0.3% |
| 62 | Japan | 140,761 | 0.3% |
| 63 | Norway | 140,645 | 0.3% |
| 64 | Germany | 134,916 | 0.3% |
| 65 | Republic of Congo | 131,854 | 0.3% |
| 66 | Malaysia | 126,854 | 0.3% |
| 67 | Côte d'Ivoire | 122,780 | 0.2% |
| 68 | Vietnam | 121,016 | 0.2% |
| 69 | Oman | 119,499 | 0.2% |
| 70 | Poland | 118,251 | 0.2% |
| 71 | Finland | 117,360 | 0.2% |
| 72 | Philippines | 115,124 | 0.2% |
| 73 | Italy | 114,178 | 0.2% |
| 74 | Burkina Faso | 105,638 | 0.2% |
| 75 | New Zealand | 101,665 | 0.2% |
| 76 | Gabon | 99,487 | 0.2% |
| 77 | Ecuador | 95,892 | 0.2% |
| 78 | Guinea | 94,873 | 0.2% |
| 79 | UK | 93,410 | 0.2% |
| 80 | Laos | 89,112 | 0.2% |
| 81 | Romania | 88,834 | 0.2% |
| 82 | Ghana | 87,851 | 0.2% |
| 83 | Guyana | 81,522 | 0.2% |
| 84 | Belarus | 78,372 | 0.2% |
| 85 | Uganda | 77,421 | 0.2% |
| 86 | Senegal | 74,336 | 0.1% |
| 87 | Kyrgyzstan | 74,054 | 0.1% |
| 88 | Syria | 70,900 | 0.1% |
| 89 | Cambodia | 68,155 | 0.1% |
| 90 | Uruguay | 67,576 | 0.1% |
| 91 | Suriname | 61,972 | 0.1% |
| 92 | Tunisia | 59,985 | 0.1% |
| 93 | Nepal | 55,348 | 0.1% |
| 94 | Tajikistan | 53,587 | 0.1% |
| 95 | Bangladesh | 50,186 | 0.1% |
| 96 | Greece | 49,769 | 0.1% |
| 97 | Eritrea | 46,787 | 0.1% |
| 98 | North Korea | 46,491 | 0.1% |
| 99 | Nicaragua | 46,464 | 0.1% |
| 100 | Benin | 43,537 | 0.1% |
| 101 | Honduras | 43,201 | 0.1% |
| 102 | Bulgaria | 41,915 | 0.1% |
| 103 | Guatemala | 41,375 | 0.1% |
| 104 | Cuba | 40,077 | 0.1% |
| 105 | Iceland | 38,931 | 0.1% |
| 106 | South Korea | 37,684 | 0.1% |
| 107 | Liberia | 37,189 | 0.1% |
| 108 | Malawi | 36,402 | 0.1% |
| 109 | Portugal | 35,369 | 0.1% |
| 110 | Hungary | 35,236 | 0.1% |
| 111 | Jordan | 34,284 | 0.1% |
| 112 | Serbia | 32,467 | 0.1% |
| 113 | Azerbaijan | 31,911 | 0.1% |
| 114 | Austria | 31,861 | 0.1% |
| 115 | Czechia | 29,794 | 0.1% |
| 116 | Panama | 28,641 | 0.1% |
| 117 | Sierra Leone | 27,869 | 0.1% |
| 118 | UAE | 27,421 | 0.1% |
| 119 | Georgia | 26,830 | 0.1% |
| 120 | Ireland | 26,599 | 0.1% |
| 121 | Lithuania | 24,170 | 0.05% |
| 122 | Latvia | 24,027 | 0.05% |
| 123 | Sri Lanka | 23,884 | 0.05% |
| 124 | Croatia | 21,606 | 0.04% |
| 125 | Togo | 21,000 | 0.04% |
| 126 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 19,768 | 0.04% |
| 127 | Costa Rica | 19,714 | 0.04% |
| 128 | Dominican Republic | 18,609 | 0.04% |
| 129 | Slovakia | 18,564 | 0.04% |
| 130 | Estonia | 16,498 | 0.03% |
| 131 | Denmark | 15,444 | 0.03% |
| 132 | Switzerland | 15,255 | 0.03% |
| 133 | Bhutan | 14,726 | 0.03% |
| 134 | Netherlands | 13,000 | 0.03% |
| 135 | Moldova | 12,714 | 0.03% |
| 136 | Belgium | 11,774 | 0.02% |
| 137 | Lesotho | 11,722 | 0.02% |
| 138 | Armenia | 10,888 | 0.02% |
| 139 | Guinea-Bissau | 10,857 | 0.02% |
| 140 | Equatorial Guinea | 10,830 | 0.02% |
| 141 | Solomon Islands | 10,807 | 0.02% |
| 142 | Haiti | 10,641 | 0.02% |
| 143 | Albania | 10,579 | 0.02% |
| 144 | Burundi | 9,915 | 0.02% |
| 145 | North Macedonia | 9,737 | 0.02% |
| 146 | Rwanda | 9,525 | 0.02% |
| 147 | Djibouti | 8,950 | 0.02% |
| 148 | Belize | 8,807 | 0.02% |
| 149 | Israel | 8,355 | 0.02% |
| 150 | El Salvador | 8,000 | 0.02% |
| 151 | Slovenia | 7,774 | 0.02% |
| 152 | New Caledonia | 7,058 | 0.01% |
| 153 | Fiji | 7,054 | 0.01% |
| 154 | Kuwait | 6,880 | 0.01% |
| 155 | Eswatini | 6,641 | 0.01% |
| 156 | Timor-Leste | 5,741 | 0.01% |
| 157 | Montenegro | 5,193 | 0.01% |
| 158 | Vanuatu | 4,707 | 0.01% |
| 159 | Qatar | 4,436 | 0.01% |
| 160 | Jamaica | 4,181 | 0.01% |
| 161 | Lebanon | 3,950 | 0.01% |
| 162 | Gambia | 3,907 | 0.01% |
| 163 | Bahamas | 3,865 | 0.01% |
| 164 | Cyprus | 3,568 | 0.01% |
| 165 | Puerto Rico | 3,425 | 0.01% |
| 166 | West Bank and Gaza | 2,326 | 0.0% |
| 167 | Brunei Darussalam | 2,035 | 0.0% |
| 168 | Trinidad and Tobago | 1,981 | 0.0% |
| 169 | Cabo Verde | 1,556 | 0.0% |
| 170 | French Polynesia | 1,340 | 0.0% |
| 171 | Samoa | 1,073 | 0.0% |
| 172 | Luxembourg | 994 | 0.0% |
| 173 | Mauritius | 771 | 0.0% |
| 174 | Comoros | 719 | 0.0% |
| 175 | Faroe Islands | 529 | 0.0% |
| 176 | Hong Kong SAR | 405 | 0.0% |
| 177 | Sao Tome and Principe | 371 | 0.0% |
| 178 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 367 | 0.0% |
| 179 | Kiribati | 313 | 0.0% |
| 180 | Bahrain | 309 | 0.0% |
| 181 | Dominica | 290 | 0.0% |
| 182 | Tonga | 278 | 0.0% |
| 183 | Singapore | 277 | 0.0% |
| 184 | Micronesia | 270 | 0.0% |
| 185 | St. Lucia | 236 | 0.0% |
| 186 | Isle of Man | 220 | 0.0% |
| 187 | Guam | 208 | 0.0% |
| 188 | Andorra | 181 | 0.0% |
| 189 | Seychelles | 178 | 0.0% |
| 190 | Palau | 178 | 0.0% |
| 191 | Northern Mariana Islands | 178 | 0.0% |
| 192 | Curacao | 171 | 0.0% |
| 193 | Antigua and Barbuda | 170 | 0.0% |
| 194 | Barbados | 166 | 0.0% |
| 195 | St. Vincent and the Grenadines | 151 | 0.0% |
| 196 | Virgin Islands | 135 | 0.0% |
| 197 | Grenada | 131 | 0.0% |
| 198 | Malta | 124 | 0.0% |
| 199 | Maldives | 115 | 0.0% |
| 200 | St. Kitts and Nevis | 100 | 0.0% |
| 201 | Cayman Islands | 93 | 0.0% |
| 202 | American Samoa | 77 | 0.0% |
| 203 | Channel Islands | 76 | 0.0% |
| 204 | Aruba | 69 | 0.0% |
| 205 | Marshall Islands | 69 | 0.0% |
| 206 | Liechtenstein | 62 | 0.0% |
| 207 | British Virgin Islands | 58 | 0.0% |
| 208 | San Marino | 23 | 0.0% |
| 209 | Bermuda | 21 | 0.0% |
| 210 | St. Martin(French part) | 19 | 0.0% |
| 211 | Sint Maarten(Dutch part) | 13 | 0.0% |
| 212 | Macao SAR | 13 | 0.0% |
| 213 | Tuvalu | 12 | 0.0% |
| 214 | Naoero | 8 | 0.0% |
| 215 | Gibraltar | 4 | 0.0% |
| 216 | Monaco | 1 | 0.0% |
| -- | Total Land Area | 50,102,095 | 100.0% |
Asia accounts for 31.8% of the world’s land area in the dataset, the largest share of any region. Russia is classified under Asia because roughly 77% of its territory lies there, despite most Russians living in the European portion of the country.
The Middle East accounts for another 4.8% of global land, slightly exceeding Europe’s 4.4% share when Russia is excluded. Saudi Arabia, the region’s largest country, ranks 12th globally by land area.
Land area can also produce some counterintuitive rankings because lakes are excluded. The Great Lakes alone cover more than 94,000 square miles across the U.S. and Canada, forming the world’s largest body of surface freshwater.
Africa’s Sheer Scale
Africa presents a different picture. Rather than being dominated by one enormous country, its land is spread across a long list of large nations.
Twenty-one African countries rank among the world’s 50 largest by land area, more than any other region. Yet Algeria, Africa’s largest country, ranks only 10th globally.
Its true scale is often obscured by map projections. Africa has roughly 14 times the land area of Greenland, which appears much larger relative to Africa on a Mercator map.
The U.S. and Canada Are Bigger Than South America
North America offers another comparison that is easy to miss on a conventional world map.
The U.S. and Canada together span over 6.9 million square miles of land, more than all of South America combined. Brazil alone accounts for nearly half of South America’s land area, followed by Argentina, Peru, and Colombia.
One of the ranking’s biggest surprises is the U.S. finishing ahead of Canada. Canada is larger by total surface area, but its vast network of lakes changes the order when inland water is excluded. By land area, the U.S. ranks third globally and Canada fourth.
Learn More on the Voronoi App
To learn more about this topic, check out this graphic on the countries with the most freshwater.