Country · Africa
DR Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
DR Congo is a country in Middle Africa. About 84.1 million people live there, in an area of 2 344 858 square kilometres. Its capital city is Kinshasa.
Picture credit: Leon Bilili (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Mamadou sacko (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Munhwangodi gaetan (CC0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is DR Congo?
DR Congo lies in Middle Africa, on the continent of Africa.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 0 km from the equator.
It shares a border with 9 countries: Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.
How big is DR Congo?
DR Congo covers 2 344 858 square kilometres.
That is about 6.6 times the size of Germany.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 11th largest.
If everybody spread out evenly, there would be about 35.9 people on every square kilometre.
That is emptier than the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in DR Congo?
About 84.1 million people live in DR Congo.
That is the 16th biggest population in the world.
People here speak French, Kikongo, Lingala, Tshiluba and Swahili.
They pay with the Congolese franc (FC).
The land of DR Congo
It lies inside the tropics, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes DR Congo different?
Websites from here often end in .cd.
DR Congo and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about 11 live in DR Congo.
It takes up about 1.8 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Africa the country ranks 2nd of 54 by size, and 4th by population.
DR Congo and its neighbours
DR Congo is about 1.9 times the size of Angola, its largest neighbour.
More people live in DR Congo than in Angola — 84.1 million against 30.8 million.
Nature and animals
Of the animals on this site, 5 live wild in DR Congo: Chimpanzee, Bonobo, Shoebill, Okapi and Serval. The highest mountain in the country is Mount Stanley, at 5 109 metres. The longest river in the country is the Congo. The largest lake in the country is Lake Tanganyika.
Photographs from Wikimedia Commons under free licences — every credit is on the page itself and in the picture credits.
Where this country lands in the record lists
How big is DR Congo compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 4 times as big as DR Congo: 9 372 610 km² against 2 344 858 km². See both on one map
- DR Congo is about 9.7 times as big as the United Kingdom: 2 344 858 km² against 242 900 km².
Questions children ask
What is the capital of DR Congo?
The capital of DR Congo is Kinshasa. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in DR Congo?
About 84.1 million people live in DR Congo, which makes it the 16th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border DR Congo?
DR Congo borders Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, the Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia — 9 neighbours in total.
How big is DR Congo?
DR Congo covers 2 344 858 square kilometres, making it the 11th largest country in the world. That is about 6.6 times the size of Germany.
What is the highest mountain in DR Congo?
The highest mountain in DR Congo is Mount Stanley, 5 109 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in DR Congo?
The longest river in DR Congo is the Congo. The whole river measures about 4 700 kilometres, and part of that course runs through the country.
What is the largest lake in DR Congo?
The largest lake in DR Congo is Lake Tanganyika. The whole lake covers about 32 900 km², and part of it belongs to neighbouring countries.
Which continent is DR Congo in?
DR Congo is in Africa, in the part called Middle Africa.
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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