The statistic shows the 30 largest countries in the world by area. Russia is the largest country by far, with a total area of about 17 million square kilometers.
Population of Russia
Despite its large area, Russia - nowadays the largest country in the world - has a relatively small total population. However, its population is still rather large in numbers in comparison to those of other countries. In mid-2014, it was ranked ninth on a list of countries with the largest population, a ranking led by China with a population of over 1.37 billion people. In 2015, the estimated total population of Russia amounted to around 146 million people. The aforementioned low population density in Russia is a result of its vast landmass; in 2014, there were only around 8.78 inhabitants per square kilometer living in the country. Most of the Russian population lives in the nation’s capital and largest city, Moscow: In 2015, over 12 million people lived in the metropolis.
In 2022, India overtook China as the world's most populous country and now has almost 1.46 billion people. China now has the second-largest population in the world, still with just over 1.4 billion inhabitants, however, its population went into decline in 2023. Global population As of 2025, the world's population stands at almost 8.2 billion people and is expected to reach around 10.3 billion people in the 2080s, when it will then go into decline. Due to improved healthcare, sanitation, and general living conditions, the global population continues to increase; mortality rates (particularly among infants and children) are decreasing and the median age of the world population has steadily increased for decades. As for the average life expectancy in industrial and developing countries, the gap has narrowed significantly since the mid-20th century. Asia is the most populous continent on Earth; 11 of the 20 largest countries are located there. It leads the ranking of the global population by continent by far, reporting four times as many inhabitants as Africa. The Demographic Transition The population explosion over the past two centuries is part of a phenomenon known as the demographic transition. Simply put, this transition results from a drastic reduction in mortality, which then leads to a reduction in fertility, and increase in life expectancy; this interim period where death rates are low and birth rates are high is where this population explosion occurs, and population growth can remain high as the population ages. In today's most-developed countries, the transition generally began with industrialization in the 1800s, and growth has now stabilized as birth and mortality rates have re-balanced. Across less-developed countries, the stage of this transition varies; for example, China is at a later stage than India, which accounts for the change in which country is more populous - understanding the demographic transition can help understand the reason why China's population is now going into decline. The least-developed region is Sub-Saharan Africa, where fertility rates remain close to pre-industrial levels in some countries. As these countries transition, they will undergo significant rates of population growth
Based on land area, Brazil is the largest country in Latin America by far, with a total area of over 8.5 million square kilometers. Argentina follows with almost 2.8 million square kilometers. Cuba, whose surface area extends over almost 111,000 square kilometers, is the Caribbean country with the largest territory.
Brazil: a country with a lot to offer
Brazil's borders reach nearly half of the South American subcontinent, making it the fifth-largest country in the world and the third-largest country in the Western Hemisphere. Along with its landmass, Brazil also boasts the largest population and economy in the region. Although Brasília is the capital, the most significant portion of the country's population is concentrated along its coastline in the cities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
South America: a region of extreme geographic variation
With the Andes mountain range in the West, the Amazon Rainforest in the East, the Equator in the North, and Cape Horn as the Southern-most continental tip, South America has some of the most diverse climatic and ecological terrains in the world. At its core, its biodiversity can largely be attributed to the Amazon, the world's largest tropical rainforest, and the Amazon river, the world's largest river. However, with this incredible wealth of ecology also comes great responsibility. In the past decade, roughly 80,000 square kilometers of the Brazilian Amazon were destroyed. And, as of late 2019, there were at least 1,000 threatened species in Brazil alone.
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The average for 2021 based on 196 countries was 656013 sq. km. The highest value was in Russia: 16376870 sq. km and the lowest value was in Monaco: 2 sq. km. The indicator is available from 1961 to 2022. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.
Russia is the largest country in Europe, and also the largest in the world, its total size amounting to 17 million square kilometers (km2). It should be noted, however, that over three quarters of Russia is located in Asia, and the Ural mountains are often viewed as the meeting point of the two continents in Russia; nonetheless, European Russia is still significantly larger than any other European country. Ukraine, the second largest country on the continent, is only 603,000 km2, making it about 28 times smaller than its eastern neighbor, or seven times smaller than the European part of Russia. France is the third largest country in Europe, but the largest in the European Union. The Vatican City, often referred to as the Holy Sea, is both the smallest country in Europe and in the world, at just one km2. Population Russia is also the most populous country in Europe. It has around 144 million inhabitants across the country; in this case, around three quarters of the population live in the European part, which still gives it the largest population in Europe. Despite having the largest population, Russia is a very sparsely populated country due to its size and the harsh winters. Germany is the second most populous country in Europe, with 83 million inhabitants, while the Vatican has the smallest population. Worldwide, India and China are the most populous countries, with approximately 1.4 billion inhabitants each. Cities Moscow in Russia is ranked as the most populous city in Europe with around 13 million inhabitants, although figures vary, due to differences in the methodologies used by countries and sources. Some statistics include Istanbul in Turkey* as the largest city in Europe with its 15 million inhabitants, bit it has been excluded here as most of the country and parts of the city is located in Asia. Worldwide, Tokyo is the most populous city, with Jakarta the second largest and Delhi the third.
The statistic shows the largest countries in South America, based on land area. Brazil is the largest country by far, with a total area of over 8.5 million square kilometers, followed by Argentina, with almost 2.8 million square kilometers.
Algeria is the biggest country in Africa, with an area exceeding 2.38 million square kilometers as of 2020. The Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan follow with a total area of around 2.34 million and 1.88 million square kilometers, respectively. On the other hand, Seychelles is the smallest country on the continent, with an area of only 460 square kilometers. Overall, Africa’s total area exceeds 30 million square kilometers, being the second largest continent in the world after Asia. Nigeria and Ethiopia lead the ranking of the most populated countries in Africa.
How have the African countries been formed?
The political geography of Africa has been influenced by its colonial history. Between the 19th and 20th Century, the European colonizers have divided up Africa. The partition of the territories was merely driven by strategic purposes: Borders between countries were artificially created in the absence of a geographic border. Following the decolonization, most countries gained their independence in the second half of the 1900s. The newest country in Africa is South Sudan, which became independent in 2011.
Africa's physical geography
Geographically, the African continent is mostly constituted by plains and tablelands. Inner plateaus are prevalent in the sub-Saharan region. In the center-north, the arid Sahara Desert extends for around nine million square kilometers, being the largest subtropical desert in the world. The continent also has some of the biggest water basins worldwide, namely the Nile, Congo, and Niger rivers. East Africa has, instead, the highest summit on the continent, the Kilimanjaro. Peaking at 5,895 meters, the mountain dominates Tanzania’s landscape and attracts thousands of climbers each year.
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The average for 2023 based on 196 countries was 0.51 percent. The highest value was in India: 17.91 percent and the lowest value was in Andorra: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.
Since the beginning of the 21st century, the BRICS countries have been considered the five foremost developing economies in the world. Originally, the term BRIC was used by economists when talking about the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, and China, however these countries have held annual summits since 2009, and the group has expanded to include South Africa since 2010. China has the largest GDP of the BRICS country, at 16.86 trillion U.S. dollars in 2021, while the others are all below three trillion. Combined, the BRICS bloc has a GDP over 25.85 trillion U.S. dollars in 2022, which is slightly more than the United States. BRICS economic development China has consistently been the largest economy of this bloc, and its rapid growth has seen it become the second largest economy in the world, behind the U.S.. China's growth has also been much faster than the other BRICS countries; for example, when compared with the second largest BRICS economy, its GDP was less than double the size of Brazil's in 2000, but is almost six times larger than India's in 2021. Since 2000, the country with the second largest GDP has fluctuated between Brazil, Russia, and India, due to a variety of factors, although India has held this position since 2015 (when the other two experienced recession), and it's growth rate is on track to surpass China's in the coming decade. South Africa has consistently had the smallest economy of the BRICS bloc, and it has just the third largest economy in Africa; its inclusion in this group is due to the fact that it is the most advanced and stable major economy in Africa, and it holds strategic importance due to the financial potential of the continent in the coming decades. Future developments It is predicted that China's GDP will overtake that of the U.S. by the end of the 2020s, to become the largest economy in the world, while some also estimate that India will also overtake the U.S. around the middle of the century. Additionally, the BRICS group is more than just an economic or trading bloc, and its New Development Bank was established in 2014 to invest in sustainable infrastructure and renewable energy across the globe. While relations between its members were often strained or of less significance in the 20th century, their current initiatives have given them a much greater international influence. The traditional great powers represented in the Group of Seven (G7) have seen their international power wane in recent decades, while BRICS countries have seen theirs grow, especially on a regional level. Today, the original BRIC countries combine with the Group of Seven (G7), to make up 11 of the world's 12 largest economies, but it is predicted that they will move further up on this list in the coming decades.
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The average for 2023 based on 154 countries was 0.65 percent. The highest value was in China: 11.76 percent and the lowest value was in Burundi: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1990 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.
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The average for 2023 based on 183 countries was 26826 U.S. dollars. The highest value was in Luxembourg: 130491 U.S. dollars and the lowest value was in Burundi: 829 U.S. dollars. The indicator is available from 1990 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.
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This dataset provides values for GDP reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.
In 2025, Luxembourg was the country with the highest gross domestic product per capita in the world. Of the 20 listed countries, 13 are in Europe and five are in Asia, alongside the U.S. and Australia. There are no African or Latin American countries among the top 20. Correlation with high living standards While GDP is a useful indicator for measuring the size or strength of an economy, GDP per capita is much more reflective of living standards. For example, when compared to life expectancy or indices such as the Human Development Index or the World Happiness Report, there is a strong overlap - 14 of the 20 countries on this list are also ranked among the 20 happiest countries in 2024, and all 20 have "very high" HDIs. Misleading metrics? GDP per capita figures, however, can be misleading, and to paint a fuller picture of a country's living standards then one must look at multiple metrics. GDP per capita figures can be skewed by inequalities in wealth distribution, and in countries such as those in the Middle East, a relatively large share of the population lives in poverty while a smaller number live affluent lifestyles.
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This dataset provides values for GOLD RESERVES reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.
Cuba is the largest island country or territory in the Caribbean, with a total area of almost 111 thousand square kilometers, followed by the Dominican Republic, with nearly 49 thousand square kilometers.
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The average for 2023 based on 148 countries was 1.95 billion U.S. dollars. The highest value was in Germany: 268.67 billion U.S. dollars and the lowest value was in the USA: -905.38 billion U.S. dollars. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.
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This dataset provides values for GDP reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.
This statistic shows the age structure in Brazil from 2013 to 2023. In 2023 about 19.94 percent of Brazil's total population were aged 0 to 14 years. Population of Brazil Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world by area and population and the largest in both South America and the Latin American region. With a total population of more than 200 million inhabitants in 2013, Brazil also ranks fifth in terms of population numbers. Brazil is a founding member of the United Nations, the G20, CPLP, and a member of the BRIC countries. BRIC is an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, and China, the four major emerging market countries. The largest cities in Brazil are São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Salvador. São Paulo alone reports over 11.1 million inhabitants. Due to a steady increase in the life expectancy in Brazil, the average age of the population has also rapidly increased. From 1950 until 2015, the average age of the population increased by an impressive 12 years; in 2015, the average age of the population in Brazil was reported to be around 31 years. As a result of the increasing average age, the percentage of people aged between 15 and 64 years has also increased: In 2013, about 68.4 percent of the population in Brazil was aged between 15 and 64 years.
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Learn about the top five wheat-producing countries in the world, including China, India, Russia, the United States, and France, and discover the key factors contributing to their high levels of wheat production.
The World Values Survey (www.worldvaluessurvey.org) is a global network of social scientists studying changing values and their impact on social and political life, led by an international team of scholars, with the WVS association and secretariat headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden.
The survey, which started in 1981, seeks to use the most rigorous, high-quality research designs in each country. The WVS consists of nationally representative surveys conducted in almost 100 countries which contain almost 90 percent of the world’s population, using a common questionnaire. The WVS is the largest non-commercial, cross-national, time series investigation of human beliefs and values ever executed, currently including interviews with almost 400,000 respondents. Moreover the WVS is the only academic study covering the full range of global variations, from very poor to very rich countries, in all of the world’s major cultural zones.
The WVS seeks to help scientists and policy makers understand changes in the beliefs, values and motivations of people throughout the world. Thousands of political scientists, sociologists, social psychologists, anthropologists and economists have used these data to analyze such topics as economic development, democratization, religion, gender equality, social capital, and subjective well-being. These data have also been widely used by government officials, journalists and students, and groups at the World Bank have analyzed the linkages between cultural factors and economic development.
The Survey covers the following countries: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Taiwan, Colombia, Cyprus, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Jordan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mali, Mexico, Moldova, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Serbia, Vietnam, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,Thailand,Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, Egypt, United Kingdom, United States, Burkina Faso, Uruguay and Zambia.
Household Individual
WVS surveys are required to cover all residents (not only citizens) between the ages of 18 and 85, inclusive. PI's can lower the minimum age limit as long as the minimum required sample size for the 18+ population (N=1200) is achieved.
Sample survey data [ssd]
Wave 5 covers 58 countries and societies around the world and more than 83,000 respondents.
The minimum sample size - i.e. the number of completed interviews which are included into the national data-set in the most of countries is 1200. Samples must be representative of all people in the age 18 and older residing within private households in each country, regardless of their nationality, citizenship or language. Whether the sampling method is full probability or a combination of probability and stratified, the national team should aim at obtaining as many Primary Sampling Units (starting points in case of random route sampling) in the sample as possible. It is highly recommended that a number of respondents per a PSU (or a route in case of random route sample) is not exceeding 10 respondents. It is possible to have several Primary Sampling Units per one settlement; they should be located in quite a good distance from each other. WVSA requires a complete explanation of proposed sampling procedures before the beginning of the survey fieldwork.
Other [oth]
For each wave, suggestions for questions are solicited by social scientists from all over the world and a final master questionnaire is developed in English. Since the start in 1981 each successive wave has covered a broader range of societies than the previous one. Analysis of the data from each wave has indicated that certain questions tapped interesting and important concepts while others were of little value. This has led to the more useful questions or themes being replicated in future waves while the less useful ones have been dropped making room for new questions.
The questionnaire is translated into the various national languages and in many cases independently translated back to English to check the accuracy of the translation. In most countries, the translated questionnaire is pre-tested to help identify questions for which the translation is problematic. In some cases certain problematic questions are omitted from the national questionnaire.
WVS requires implementation of the common questionnaire fully and faithfully, in all countries included into one wave. Any alteration to the original questionnaire has to be approved by the EC. Omission of no more than a maximum of 12 questions in any given country can be allowed.
The statistic shows the 30 largest countries in the world by area. Russia is the largest country by far, with a total area of about 17 million square kilometers.
Population of Russia
Despite its large area, Russia - nowadays the largest country in the world - has a relatively small total population. However, its population is still rather large in numbers in comparison to those of other countries. In mid-2014, it was ranked ninth on a list of countries with the largest population, a ranking led by China with a population of over 1.37 billion people. In 2015, the estimated total population of Russia amounted to around 146 million people. The aforementioned low population density in Russia is a result of its vast landmass; in 2014, there were only around 8.78 inhabitants per square kilometer living in the country. Most of the Russian population lives in the nation’s capital and largest city, Moscow: In 2015, over 12 million people lived in the metropolis.