- 1. Russian Federation
- 2. Canada
- 3. United States
- 4. People's Republic of China
- 5. Brazil
- 6. Australia
- 7. India
- 8. Argentina
- 9. Kazakhstan
- 10. Algeria
- 11. DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo)
- 12. Denmark
- 13. Saudi Arabia
- 14. Mexico
- 15. Indonesia
- 16. Sudan
- 17. Libya
- 18. Iran
- 19. Mongolia
- 20. Peru
Scattered all over the world, discover our ranking of the 20 largest countries in the world!
With a surface area of 510.1 million km², planet Earth is one of the smallest stars in the universe. However, the Blue Planet is the only one so far capable of supporting life. More than 7 billion people live on it, spread over 5 continents, which are themselves subdivided into smaller and larger nations. Among these, which are the 20 largest countries in the world in terms of surface area?
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1. Russian Federation
Situated straddling Europe and Asia, the Russian Federation is the largest nation in the world. With a total surface area of nearly 17,125,191 km² or 11.5% of the Earth's habitable surface.
Russia is 26 times the size of France, but has a population barely 3 times the size of France.
2. Canada
Canada is famous for its maple syrup, but also for its quality of life and its magnificent national parks. Formerly a British colony, the beaver nation is the second largest in the world with an area of almost 10 million km² or 6.7% of the habitable surface on Earth.
3. United States
Although it is one of the leading nations of the world, the United States is only the third largest country in the world. With an area of 9,629,091 square kilometres, it occupies only 6.4% of the world's surface area.
4. People's Republic of China
The Middle Kingdom is a motley collection of nations and special territories or provinces, all ultimately forming the People's Republic of China. With a surface area of 9,596,961 km², China is the fourth largest country in the world.
This area includes the municipalities and special administrative regions of China such as Hong Kong and Macau. Taiwan's status is even more peculiar.
5. Brazil
Brazil is the most economically and infrastructurally developed nation in South America. It ranks fifth among the 20 largest countries in the world with a total area of 8,515,767 km², or 5.7% of the world's habitable surface.
6. Australia
Famous for its kangaroos, its wilderness well mixed with an environment as modern as the countries of the West, Australia is undoubtedly one of the most fascinating, intriguing and isolated countries in the world.
With an area of 7,692,060 square kilometres, or 5.2% of the Earth's habitable surface, Australia is the sixth largest nation in the world.
7. India
India is the country of superlatives in terms of geography and demography. The country of the Maharajas with an area of 3,287,263 square kilometers (2.3% of the Earth's habitable surface) is the seventh largest country in the world.
It is also one of the most populated with more than one billion inhabitants.
8. Argentina
Best known for having given the world some of the greatest players in the history of football (Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi), Argentina is first and foremost an imposing nation stretching over 2,780,400 square kilometres of land. It is the eighth largest nation in the world.
9. Kazakhstan
Unknown because of its continental isolation, Kazakhstan is nevertheless one of the nations that decided to separate from the Soviet bloc at the time. With a total area of 2,724,910 km² it is the ninth largest country in the world.
10. Algeria
Especially known for the architectural masterpieces inherited from the colonial period in the cities of Constantine and others, Algeria is the largest country in Africa, but also the tenth largest in the world with an area of 2,381,741 km². That is 1.6% of the Earth's surface.
11. DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo)
There would probably be no IT without the DRC. The second largest nation in the world, it alone owns more than 90% of the world's coltan and even cobalt reserves. Two raw materials are used, one in the design of hardware parts for computers and smartphones, the other in the design of batteries for electric cars.
The DRC is the eleventh largest country in the world with a total surface area of 2,345,409 km².
12. Denmark
No one will be surprised to see Denmark appear in this ranking. However, keep in mind that Denmark is not just the small European nation of just 43,000 square kilometres. It is also Greenland with 2,166,086 km² and the Faroe Islands with 1,393 km, giving a total area of 2,210,573 km².
Denmark is therefore technically the largest country in Europe.
13. Saudi Arabia
The history of the Middle East is incestuously linked to that of Saudi Arabia. This Kingdom is the largest country in the Middle East and the thirteenth largest nation in the world with a total area of 2,149,680 square kilometers.
14. Mexico
Mexico is the fourteenth largest country in the world with a total area of 1,964,375 km².
15. Indonesia
Indonesia is the largest country in Southeast Asia, but also the fifteenth largest in the world with an area of 1,910,931 km².
16. Sudan
Although excluded from the theater of nations for political reasons, Sudan is the third largest nation in Africa, and sixteenth largest in the world with a total area of 1,861,484 square kilometers.
17. Libya
A country rich in abundance in terms of raw materials, Libya is the seventeenth largest nation in the world with an area of 1,759,540 km².
18. Iran
Iran is the second largest country in the Middle East after Saudi Arabia. This Muslim country has an area of 1,648,195 square kilometers.
19. Mongolia
Mongolia is one of those nations that talk very little about themselves. This East Asian country is also full of all kinds of raw materials and covers an area of 1,564,100 km².
20. Peru
The third largest country in South America, Peru has an area of 1,285,216 km².
