Country · Americas
Colombia
Republic of Colombia
Colombia is a country in South America. About 49.6 million people live there, in an area of 1 141 748 square kilometres. Its capital city is Bogotá.
Picture credit: Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Bernard Gagnon (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Bernard Gagnon (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Felipe Restrepo Acosta (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Bernard Gagnon (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Colombia?
Colombia lies in South America, on the continent of Americas.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 445 km from the equator.
Its coastline is about 3 208 km long.
It shares a border with 5 countries: Brazil, Ecuador, Panama, Peru and Venezuela.
How big is Colombia?
Colombia covers 1 141 748 square kilometres.
That is about 11 times the size of Iceland.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 25th largest.
If everybody spread out evenly, there would be about 43.5 people on every square kilometre.
That is close to the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in Colombia?
About 49.6 million people live in Colombia.
That is the 29th biggest population in the world.
People here speak Spanish.
They pay with the Colombian peso ($).
On average, people born here can expect to live about 70 years.
The land of Colombia
The land of Colombia sits on average 593 metres above sea level.
Its coast runs for about 3 208 km. Walking it end to end, at twenty kilometres a day, would take roughly 160 days.
It lies inside the tropics, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes Colombia different?
Dishes the country is known for: Ajiaco and Bandeja paisa.
Websites from here often end in .co.
Colombia and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about 7 live in Colombia.
It takes up about 0.86 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Americas the country ranks 7th of 35 by size, and 4th by population.
Colombia and its neighbours
Brazil, its largest neighbour, is about 7.5 times bigger.
Brazil has more people: 209.5 million against 49.6 million.
Nature and animals
Of the animals on this site, 20 live wild in Colombia: Jaguar, Brown-throated sloth, Nine-banded armadillo, Green iguana, Golden poison frog, Red-eyed tree frog and more. The highest mountain in the country is Pico Cristóbal Colón, at 5 775 metres. The longest river in the country is the Magdalena River. The largest lake in the country is Lake Tota.
Jaguar
Brown-throated sloth
Nine-banded armadillo
Green iguana
Golden poison frog
Red-eyed tree frog
Guinea pig
Capybara
Puma
Red-bellied piranha
Electric eel
Green anaconda
Photographs from Wikimedia Commons under free licences — every credit is on the page itself and in the picture credits.
How big is Colombia compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 8.2 times as big as Colombia: 9 372 610 km² against 1 141 748 km². See both on one map
- Colombia is about 4.7 times as big as the United Kingdom: 1 141 748 km² against 242 900 km².
Questions children ask
What is the capital of Colombia?
The capital of Colombia is Bogotá. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in Colombia?
About 49.6 million people live in Colombia, which makes it the 29th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border Colombia?
How big is Colombia?
Colombia covers 1 141 748 square kilometres, making it the 25th largest country in the world. That is about 11 times the size of Iceland.
What is the highest mountain in Colombia?
The highest mountain in Colombia is Pico Cristóbal Colón, 5 775 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in Colombia?
The longest river in Colombia is the Magdalena River, about 1 528 kilometres long.
What is the largest lake in Colombia?
The largest lake in Colombia is Lake Tota. It covers about 55 km².
Which continent is Colombia in?
Colombia is in Americas, in the part called South America.
Where these numbers come from
Borders and outlines: Natural Earth. Names, capitals, areas, languages and currencies: ISO 3166 data (world-countries). Population: World Bank, 2018. Every derived figure on this page (ranks, density, distance from the equator) is calculated from those values.
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