Country · Europe
Italy
Italian Republic
Italy is a country in Southern Europe. About 60.4 million people live there, in an area of 301 336 square kilometres. Its capital city is Rome.
Picture credit: Agnes Monkelbaan (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Timothy A. Gonsalves (CC BY-SA 4.0) · This Photo (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Bert Kaufmann (CC BY-SA 2.0) · Diliff (CC BY 3.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Italy?
Italy lies in Southern Europe, on the continent of Europe.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 4 768 km from the equator.
Its coastline is about 7 600 km long.
It shares a border with 6 countries: Austria, France, San Marino, Slovenia, Switzerland and Vatican City.
How big is Italy?
Italy covers 301 336 square kilometres.
That is about 7.3 times the size of Switzerland.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 72nd largest.
If everybody spread out evenly, there would be about 200.5 people on every square kilometre.
That is busier than the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in Italy?
About 60.4 million people live in Italy.
That is the 23rd biggest population in the world.
People here speak Italian.
They pay with the Euro (€).
On average, people born here can expect to live about 79 years.
The land of Italy
The land of Italy sits on average 538 metres above sea level.
Its coast runs for about 7 600 km. Walking it end to end, at twenty kilometres a day, would take roughly 380 days.
It lies between the tropics and the poles, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes Italy different?
Dishes the country is known for: Pasta, Polenta and Pizza.
Websites from here often end in .it.
Italy and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about 8 live in Italy.
It takes up about 0.23 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Europe the country ranks 10th of 45 by size, and 5th by population.
Italy and its neighbours
France, its largest neighbour, is about 1.8 times bigger.
France has more people: 67 million against 60.4 million.
Nature and animals
Of the animals on this site, 45 live wild in Italy: European badger, Red squirrel, European hedgehog, European brown hare, Common pipistrelle bat, Alpine ibex and more. The highest mountain in the country is Mont Blanc, at 4 807 metres. The longest river in the country is the Po. The largest lake in the country is Lake Garda. And one of the wonders of the world stands here: the Colosseum.
European badger
Red squirrel
European hedgehog
European brown hare
Common pipistrelle bat
Alpine ibex
Chamois
Alpine marmot
Bottlenose dolphin
Wild boar
Beech marten
Fire salamander
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 Italy compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 31 times as big as Italy: 9 372 610 km² against 301 336 km². See both on one map
- Italy is about 1.2 times as big as the United Kingdom: 301 336 km² against 242 900 km². See both on one map
Questions children ask
What is the capital of Italy?
The capital of Italy is Rome. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in Italy?
About 60.4 million people live in Italy, which makes it the 23rd most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
Which countries border Italy?
Italy borders Austria, France, San Marino, Slovenia, Switzerland and Vatican City — 6 neighbours in total.
How big is Italy?
Italy covers 301 336 square kilometres, making it the 72nd largest country in the world. That is about 7.3 times the size of Switzerland.
What is the highest mountain in Italy?
The highest mountain in Italy is Mont Blanc, 4 807 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in Italy?
The longest river in Italy is the Po, about 652 kilometres long.
What is the largest lake in Italy?
The largest lake in Italy is Lake Garda. It covers about 370 km².
Which continent is Italy in?
Italy is in Europe, in the part called Southern Europe.
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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