Country · Americas
Guatemala
Republic of Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America. About 17.2 million people live there, in an area of 108 889 square kilometres. Its capital city is Guatemala City.
Picture credit: Christopher Crouzet (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Christopher Crouzet (CC BY-SA 3.0) · mardoqueo sagastume (CC BY 3.0) · BladimiroAlvarado (CC BY-SA 4.0) · amslerPIX (CC BY 2.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Guatemala?
Guatemala lies in Central America, on the continent of Americas.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 1 725 km from the equator.
Its coastline is about 400 km long.
It shares a border with 4 countries: Belize, El Salvador, Honduras and Mexico.
How big is Guatemala?
Guatemala covers 108 889 square kilometres.
That is about 2.6 times the size of Switzerland.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 105th largest.
If everybody spread out evenly, there would be about 158.4 people on every square kilometre.
That is busier than the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in Guatemala?
About 17.2 million people live in Guatemala.
That is the 65th biggest population in the world.
People here speak Spanish.
They pay with the Guatemalan quetzal (Q).
On average, people born here can expect to live about 66 years.
The land of Guatemala
The land of Guatemala sits on average 759 metres above sea level.
Its coast runs for about 400 km. Walking it end to end, at twenty kilometres a day, would take roughly 20 days.
It lies inside the tropics, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes Guatemala different?
Dishes the country is known for: Fiambre and Pepian.
Websites from here often end in .gt.
Guatemala and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about 2 live in Guatemala.
It takes up about 0.08 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Americas the country ranks 19th of 35 by size, and 10th by population.
Guatemala and its neighbours
Mexico, its largest neighbour, is about 18 times bigger.
Mexico has more people: 126.2 million against 17.2 million.
Nature and animals
Of the animals on this site, 4 live wild in Guatemala: Virginia opossum, Coyote, Black-handed spider monkey and Southern flying squirrel. The highest mountain in the country is Volcán Tajumulco, at 4 203 metres. The longest river in the country is the Motagua River. The largest lake in the country is Lake Izabal.
Photographs from Wikimedia Commons under free licences — every credit is on the page itself and in the picture credits.
How big is Guatemala compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 86 times as big as Guatemala: 9 372 610 km² against 108 889 km².
- The United Kingdom is about 2.2 times as big as Guatemala: 242 900 km² against 108 889 km².
Questions children ask
What is the capital of Guatemala?
The capital of Guatemala is Guatemala City. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in Guatemala?
About 17.2 million people live in Guatemala, which makes it the 65th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border Guatemala?
Guatemala borders Belize, El Salvador, Honduras and Mexico — 4 neighbours in total.
How big is Guatemala?
Guatemala covers 108 889 square kilometres, making it the 105th largest country in the world. That is about 2.6 times the size of Switzerland.
What is the highest mountain in Guatemala?
The highest mountain in Guatemala is Volcán Tajumulco, 4 203 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in Guatemala?
The longest river in Guatemala is the Motagua River, about 487 kilometres long.
What is the largest lake in Guatemala?
The largest lake in Guatemala is Lake Izabal. It covers about 590 km².
Which continent is Guatemala in?
Guatemala is in Americas, in the part called Central 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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