Top 10 · economy
Top 10 countries by land area
Land area in square kilometres. UN / world-countries data, latest year 2024, covering 196 countries. Ranked biggest first.
The top 10
1st of 196 · 2024
Russia17,098,242 km²
- 2ndCanada9,984,670 km²
- 3rdChina9,706,961 km²
- 4thUnited States9,372,610 km²
- 5thBrazil8,515,767 km²
- 6thAustralia7,692,024 km²
- 7thIndia3,287,590 km²
- 8thArgentina2,780,400 km²
- 9thKazakhstan2,724,900 km²
- 10thAlgeria2,381,741 km²
The other end · bottom 5 of 196
- 192ndSan Marino61 km²
- 193rdTuvalu26 km²
- 194thNauru21 km²
- 195thMonaco2 km²
- 196thVatican City0 km²
Where the big countries land
- 62ndGermany357,114 km²
Common questions
Questions people ask about land area
Which country ranks highest for land area?
Russia ranks 1st of 196 countries at 17,098,242 km² (2024 data). Source: UN / world-countries.
Which countries are in the top 10 for land area?
The top 10 are Russia, Canada, China, United States, Brazil, Australia, India, Argentina, Kazakhstan and Algeria — computed from UN / world-countries data, latest year 2024.
Where does the United States rank in land area?
The United States ranks 4th of 196 countries at 9,372,610 km² (2024 data). Source: UN / world-countries.
What is the median land area worldwide?
Across the 196 countries covered, the median is 118,042 km². Values run from 17,098,242 km² (Russia, ranked 1st) to 0 km² (Vatican City, ranked 196th).
Is land area higher in Europe or the US?
The median across 46 European countries is 64,930 km², against 9,372,610 km² in the United States — it is higher in the US. Source: UN / world-countries.
Which country ranks lowest for land area?
Vatican City sits at the other end of the list: 0 km² ranks 196th of 196 (2024 data). Source: UN / world-countries.
Keep ranking
Keep exploring
More on economy
- Human development indexUNDP composite of health, education and income (0–1).
- GDP per capitaOutput per person, price-adjusted: states via BEA regional price parities, countries via PPP.
- Median income (after tax)Median equivalised household disposable income per person, USD PPP — what the middle household actually has to spend after taxes and transfers.
- PopulationResident population.
- Cost of livingOverall price level relative to the US average (100).
- Income inequalityGini index of income distribution (0 = perfect equality).
Who leads the world
- Monacotops life expectancy86.5 years
- Singaporetops homicide rate0.1 per 100k
- Bulgariatops paid maternity leave59 weeks
Russia leads on land area — see where it lands on every other measure, and which US state it most resembles.
From the blog: Census, BEA, CDC, BLS: why US state data is unusually good · Pinned snapshots: when we deliberately don't auto-refresh
All 68 measures →Every country ranked →Every US state →All the Top 10s →The overall board →How we read the data →