Russia is the largest country in the world by far, with a total area of just over 17 million square kilometers. After Antarctica, the next three countries are Canada, the U.S., and China; all between 9.5 and 10 million square kilometers. The figures given include internal water surface area (such as lakes or rivers) - if the figures were for land surface only then China would be the second largest country in the world, the U.S. third, and Canada (the country with more lakes than the rest of the world combined) fourth. Russia Russia has a population of around 145 million people, putting it in the top ten most populous countries in the world, and making it the most populous in Europe. However, it's vast size gives it a very low population density, ranked among the bottom 20 countries. Most of Russia's population is concentrated in the west, with around 75 percent of the population living in the European part, while around 75 percent of Russia's territory is in Asia; the Ural Mountains are considered the continental border. Elsewhere in the world Beyond Russia, the world's largest countries all have distinctive topographies and climates setting them apart. The United States, for example, has climates ranging from tundra in Alaska to tropical forests in Florida, with various mountain ranges, deserts, plains, and forests in between. Populations in these countries are often concentrated in urban areas, and are not evenly distributed across the country. For example, around 85 percent of Canada's population lives within 100 miles of the U.S. border; around 95 percent of China lives east of the Heihe–Tengchong Line that splits the country; and the majority of populations in large countries such as Australia or Brazil live near the coast.

The average for 2023 based on 196 countries was 656095 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 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

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.

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.

Russia was the largest country in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region, with a total area of over 17 million square kilometers in 2025. Furthermore, Russia was the largest country in the world, followed by Canada, the United States, and China. Ranking second among the CIS countries was Kazakhstan, whose land area comprised about 2.7 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.

Context

World fact sheet, fun to link with other datasets.

Content

Information on population, region, area size, infant mortality and more.

Acknowledgements

Source: All these data sets are made up of data from the US government. Generally they are free to use if you use the data in the US. If you are outside of the US, you may need to contact the US Govt to ask. Data from the World Factbook is public domain. The website says "The World Factbook is in the public domain and may be used freely by anyone at anytime without seeking permission."
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/docs/faqs.html

Inspiration

When making visualisations related to countries, sometimes it is interesting to group them by attributes such as region, or weigh their importance by population, GDP or other variables.

Description

This comprehensive dataset provides a wealth of information about all countries worldwide, covering a wide range of indicators and attributes. It encompasses demographic statistics, economic indicators, environmental factors, healthcare metrics, education statistics, and much more. With every country represented, this dataset offers a complete global perspective on various aspects of nations, enabling in-depth analyses and cross-country comparisons.

Key Features

• Country: Name of the country.
• Density (P/Km2): Population density measured in persons per square kilometer.
• Abbreviation: Abbreviation or code representing the country.
• Agricultural Land (%): Percentage of land area used for agricultural purposes.
• Land Area (Km2): Total land area of the country in square kilometers.
• Armed Forces Size: Size of the armed forces in the country.
• Birth Rate: Number of births per 1,000 population per year.
• Calling Code: International calling code for the country.
• Capital/Major City: Name of the capital or major city.
• CO2 Emissions: Carbon dioxide emissions in tons.
• CPI: Consumer Price Index, a measure of inflation and purchasing power.
• CPI Change (%): Percentage change in the Consumer Price Index compared to the previous year.
• Currency_Code: Currency code used in the country.
• Fertility Rate: Average number of children born to a woman during her lifetime.
• Forested Area (%): Percentage of land area covered by forests.
• Gasoline_Price: Price of gasoline per liter in local currency.
• GDP: Gross Domestic Product, the total value of goods and services produced in the country.
• Gross Primary Education Enrollment (%): Gross enrollment ratio for primary education.
• Gross Tertiary Education Enrollment (%): Gross enrollment ratio for tertiary education.
• Infant Mortality: Number of deaths per 1,000 live births before reaching one year of age.
• Largest City: Name of the country's largest city.
• Life Expectancy: Average number of years a newborn is expected to live.
• Maternal Mortality Ratio: Number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births.
• Minimum Wage: Minimum wage level in local currency.
• Official Language: Official language(s) spoken in the country.
• Out of Pocket Health Expenditure (%): Percentage of total health expenditure paid out-of-pocket by individuals.
• Physicians per Thousand: Number of physicians per thousand people.
• Population: Total population of the country.
• Population: Labor Force Participation (%): Percentage of the population that is part of the labor force.
• Tax Revenue (%): Tax revenue as a percentage of GDP.
• Total Tax Rate: Overall tax burden as a percentage of commercial profits.
• Unemployment Rate: Percentage of the labor force that is unemployed.
• Urban Population: Percentage of the population living in urban areas.
• Latitude: Latitude coordinate of the country's location.
• Longitude: Longitude coordinate of the country's location.

Potential Use Cases

• Analyze population density and land area to study spatial distribution patterns.
• Investigate the relationship between agricultural land and food security.
• Examine carbon dioxide emissions and their impact on climate change.
• Explore correlations between economic indicators such as GDP and various socio-economic factors.
• Investigate educational enrollment rates and their implications for human capital development.
• Analyze healthcare metrics such as infant mortality and life expectancy to assess overall well-being.
• Study labor market dynamics through indicators such as labor force participation and unemployment rates.
• Investigate the role of taxation and its impact on economic development.
• Explore urbanization trends and their social and environmental consequences.

Data Source: This dataset was compiled from multiple data sources

If this was helpful, a vote is appreciated ❤️ Thank you 🙂

The average for 2023 based on 27 countries was 147715 sq. km. The highest value was in France: 538950 sq. km and the lowest value was in Malta: 320 sq. km. The indicator is available from 1961 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

World Countries provides a detailed basemap layer for the countries of the world. This layer has been designed to be used as a basemap and includes fields for official names and country codes, along with fields for continent and display. Particularly useful are the fields LAND_TYPE and LAND_RANK that separate polygons based on their size. These fields are helpful for rendering at different scales by providing the ability to turn off small islands that may clutter small-scale (zoomed out) views. The sources of this dataset are Esri, Garmin, U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (The World Factbook), and International Organization for Standardization (ISO). This layer was published in October 2024. It is updated every 12-18 months or as significant changes occur.

The average for 2023 based on 11 countries was 671160 sq. km. The highest value was in India: 2973190 sq. km and the lowest value was in Singapore: 718 sq. km. The indicator is available from 1961 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The World Bank's data for 2021 on total land area by country provides detailed information on the size of land in square kilometers for various countries worldwide. Here are some key highlights from the dataset:

Russia is the largest country by land area, with approximately 16.38 million square kilometers. Canada follows with around 9.98 million square kilometers. China has a land area of about 9.42 million square kilometers, making it the third largest. The United States (excluding territories) covers around 9.14 million square kilometers. Smaller countries and regions include:

Vatican City, with an area of about 0.44 square kilometers. Monaco, with 2 square kilometers

THIS DATA WAS LAST UPDATED IN 2024 and it is owned by https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/AG.LND.TOTL.K2?end=2021&start=2021&view=map

The average for 2023 based on 194 countries was 207390.9 sq. km. The highest value was in Russia: 8153120 sq. km and the lowest value was in Gibraltar: 0 sq. km. The indicator is available from 1990 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The largest of the three Scandinavian countries is Norway, with a surface of 625,222 square kilometers, when including the arctic islands of Svalbard and Jan Mayen. Without these, Norway's total area size amounts to 385,207 square kilometers. Its neighboring country Sweden has a size of approximately 447,000 square kilometers, whereas Denmark is significantly smaller at around 43,000 square kilometers. Greenland, an autonomous area under the Kingdom of Denmark, has an ice-free surface of 410,450 km2, but its total area amounts to 2.67 million km2, making it the largest island in the world.

Since South Sudan became an independent state on 9 July 2011, there are now 195 independent sovereign nations in the world (not including the disputed but de facto independent Taiwan, plus some 60 dependent areas and several disputed territories, such as Kosovo.

193 sovereign states are United Nations members and equally represented in the UN General Assembly. Two non-member countries have permanent observer states: the Holy See and the State of Palestine.

Below is a list of countries and areas of the world in alphabetical order, with official names and alternative designations. The list contains English and French country names as well as the local names of the countries.

Links will lead to the respective One World - Nations Online country profiles.

Each country profile contains links to and information about important official websites of a country/territory, geographic information, maps, the national flag, history, culture, and tourist destinations. The country profiles include information on a country's population and languages, its capital(s) and largest cities, tourist attractions, and world heritage sites, as well as education, economy, newspapers and news sources, and other country information

The average for 2023 based on 194 countries was 31.6 percent. The highest value was in Suriname: 94.4 percent and the lowest value was in Egypt: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1990 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

With 450,295 square kilometers, Sweden is the largest Nordic country by area size, followed by Finland and Norway. This makes it the fifth largest country in Europe. Meanwhile, Denmark is the smallest of the five Nordic countries with only 43,094 square kilometers, however, the Danish autonomous region of Greenland is significantly larger than any of the Nordic countries, and is almost double the size of the other five combined.

Population

Sweden is also the Nordic country with the largest population. 10.45 million people live in the country. Denmark, Finland, and Norway all have between five and six million inhabitants, whereas only 370,000 people live in Iceland. Meanwhile, Denmark has the highest population density of the five countries. Greenland is the most sparsely populated permanently-inhabited country in the world, followed by the regions of Svalbard and Jan Mayen.

Geography

The five Nordic countries vary geographically. While Denmark is mostly flat, its highest point only stretching around 170 meters above sea level, Norway's highest peak is nearly 2,500 meters high. Moreover, Finland is known for its many lakes and is often called the land of a thousand lakes, whereas Iceland is famous for its volcanoes.

**🌍 World Countries Dataset This World Countries Dataset contains detailed information about countries across the globe, offering insights into their geographic, demographic, and economic characteristics.

It includes various features such as population, area, GDP, languages, and regional classifications. This dataset is ideal for projects related to data visualization, statistical analysis, geographical studies, or machine learning applications such as clustering or classification of countries.

This dataset was manually compiled/collected from reliable open data sources (e.g., Wikipedia, World Bank, or other governmental datasets).

**🔍 Sample Questions Explored Using Python: - Q. 1) Which countries have the highest and lowest population? - Q. 2) What is the average area (in sq. km) of countries in each region? - Q. 3) Which countries have more than 100 million population and GDP above $1 trillion? - Q. 4) Which languages are most commonly spoken across countries? - Q. 5) Show a bar graph comparing GDPs of G7 nations. - Q. 6) How many countries are there in each continent or region? - Q. 7) Which countries have both a high population density and low GDP per capita? - Q. 8) Create a world map visualization of population or GDP distribution. - Q. 9) What are the top 10 most densely populated countries? - Q. 10) How many landlocked countries are there in the world?

**🧾 Features / Columns in the Dataset: - Country: The name of the country (e.g., "Pakistan", "France").

• Capital: The capital city of the country.

• Region: Broad geographical region (e.g., "Asia", "Europe").

• Subregion: More specific geographical grouping (e.g., "Southern Asia").

• Population: Total population of the country.

• Area (sq. km): Total land area in square kilometers.

• Population Density: Number of people per square kilometer.

• GDP (USD): Gross Domestic Product (in U.S. dollars).

• GDP per Capita: GDP divided by the population.

• Official Languages: Officially recognized language(s) spoken.

• Currency: Name of the currency used.

• Timezones: Timezones in which the country falls.

• Borders: List of bordering countries (if any).

• Landlocked: Whether the country is landlocked (Yes/No).

• Latitude / Longitude: Coordinates for geographical plotting.

Embark on a journey around the world with this rich dataset, offering a detailed exploration of countries, capitals, populations, and geographical areas. From bustling capitals to vast landscapes, this collection provides valuable insights into the diverse characteristics of nations across the globe. Dive into the data to uncover population demographics, capital cities, and the expansive territorial dimensions of each country. Whether you're a geography enthusiast, researcher, or simply curious about the world, this dataset offers a comprehensive snapshot of our global community.

Description

This Dataset contains details of World Population by country. According to the worldometer, the current population of the world is 8.2 billion people. Highest populated country is India followed by China and USA.

Attribute Information

• Rank : Country Rank by Population.
• Country : Name of the Country.
• Population(2024) : Current Population of each Country.
• Yearly Change : Percentage Yearly Change in Population.
• Net Change : Net change in the Population.
• Density (P/Km²) : Population density (population per square km)
• Land Area(Km²) : Total land area of the Country.
• Migrants (net) : Total number of migrants.
• Fertility Rate : Fertility rate
• Median Age : Median age of the population
• Urban Pop % : Percentage of urban population
• World Share : Share to the word with population.

Acknowledgements

https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/population-by-country/

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay