Country · Europe
Moldova
Republic of Moldova
Moldova is a country in Eastern Europe. About 2.7 million people live there, in an area of 33 846 square kilometres. Its capital city is Chișinău.
Picture credit: Furkan Akkurt (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Pudelek (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Анатолий Зубанюк (CC BY 3.0) · Photobank MD (CC0) · Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Moldova?
Moldova lies in Eastern Europe, on the continent of Europe.
It sits in the northern half of the world, roughly 5 232 km from the equator.
Moldova is landlocked: it has no coast at all, so you cannot reach the sea without crossing another country.
It shares a border with 2 countries: Romania and Ukraine.
How big is Moldova?
Moldova covers 33 846 square kilometres.
That is about 13 times the size of Luxembourg.
Among the world's countries that makes it the 135th largest.
If everybody spread out evenly, there would be about 80 people on every square kilometre.
That is close to the world average of roughly 60 people per square kilometre.
Who lives in Moldova?
About 2.7 million people live in Moldova.
That is the 138th biggest population in the world.
People here speak Moldavian.
They pay with the Moldovan leu (L).
On average, people born here can expect to live about 65 years.
The land of Moldova
The land of Moldova sits on average 139 metres above sea level, which makes it one of the flatter countries on Earth.
Because it is landlocked, anything that comes by ship has to cross one of its 2 neighbours to get here.
It lies between the tropics and the poles, which is the single biggest reason its weather is the way it is.
What makes Moldova different?
Dishes the country is known for: Mămăligă, Sarmale and Răcituri.
Websites from here often end in .md.
Moldova and the rest of the world
Out of every thousand people alive on Earth, about one lives in Moldova.
It takes up about 0.03 % of all the land that countries stand on.
Within Europe the country ranks 32nd of 45 by size, and 31st by population.
Moldova and its neighbours
Ukraine, its largest neighbour, is about 17.8 times bigger.
Ukraine has more people: 44.6 million against 2.7 million.
Nature and animals
The highest mountain in the country is Bălănești Hill, at 430 metres. The longest river in the country is the Prut. The largest lake in the country is Lake Beleu.
How big is Moldova compared with the United States?
- The United States is about 277 times as big as Moldova: 9 372 610 km² against 33 846 km².
- The United Kingdom is about 7.2 times as big as Moldova: 242 900 km² against 33 846 km².
Questions children ask
What is the capital of Moldova?
The capital of Moldova is Chișinău. It is the city where the country's government works from.
How many people live in Moldova?
About 2.7 million people live in Moldova, which makes it the 138th most populated country in the world. (Source: World Bank, 2018.)
How big is Moldova?
Moldova covers 33 846 square kilometres, making it the 135th largest country in the world. That is about 13 times the size of Luxembourg.
What is the highest mountain in Moldova?
The highest mountain in Moldova is Bălănești Hill, 430 metres above sea level. It is the country's highest point.
What is the longest river in Moldova?
The longest river in Moldova is the Prut. Of its 953 kilometres, about 695 run through the country.
What is the largest lake in Moldova?
The largest lake in Moldova is Lake Beleu. It covers about 6 km².
Which continent is Moldova in?
Moldova is in Europe, in the part called Eastern 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.
Last checked: · How these pages are made