List of countries by coast/area ratio
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of countries by coast/area ratio. The coast/area ratio, measures how many meters of coastline correspond to every square kilometer of land area. The ratio illustrates the ease of accessibility to the country's coast from every point in its mainland. Therefore, an island country like Maldives, or a country carved by the sea like Greece, is more likely to have a high ratio, while a landlocked country like Austria will have zero. However, because length of coastline is a fractal measurement, measurements of a country's coastline at different scales will be different - the more detail, the longer the coastline will be.
Additionally, the coast/perimeter ratio, measures the percentage of coastline over the total perimeter (=land boundary plus coastline) of each country. Therefore an island country like Malta will have 100%, while a landlocked country like Switzerland will have 0%.
It should be noted that the accuracy of figures for coastline depend greatly on the scale of the map that they derive from, while differing figures are given by several sources. The Coastline figures here come from the CIA World Factbook.[1]
Rank | Country | Land area (km²) |
Land boundary (km) |
Coastline (km) |
Total perimeter (km) |
Coast/Area Ratio (m/km²) |
Coast/Perimeter Percentage |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Federated States of Micronesia | 702.00 | - | 6,112.00 | 6,112.00 | 8,706.553 | 100.0% |
2 | Palau | 458.00 | - | 1,519.00 | 1,519.00 | 3,316.594 | 100.0% |
3 | Maldives | 300.00 | - | 644.00 | 644.00 | 2,146.667 | 100.0% |
4 | Monaco | 1.95 | 4.40 | 4.10 | 8.50 | 2,102.564 | 48.2% |
5 | Marshall Islands | 181.30 | - | 370.40 | 370.40 | 2,043.023 | 100.0% |
6 | Kiribati | 717.00 | - | 1,143.00 | 1,143.00 | 1,594.142 | 100.0% |
7 | Nauru | 21.00 | - | 30.00 | 30.00 | 1,428.571 | 100.0% |
8 | Seychelles | 455.00 | - | 491.00 | 491.00 | 1,079.121 | 100.0% |
9 | Tuvalu | 26.00 | - | 24.00 | 24.00 | 923.077 | 100.0% |
10 | Tonga | 718.00 | - | 419.00 | 419.00 | 583.565 | 100.0% |
11 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 261.00 | - | 135.00 | 135.00 | 517.241 | 100.0% |
Cook Islands | 240.00 | - | 120.00 | 120.00 | 500.000 | 100.0% | |
12 | Malta | 316.00 | - | 140.00 | 140.00 | 443.038 | 100.0% |
13 | Grenada | 340.00 | - | 121.00 | 121.00 | 355.882 | 100.0% |
14 | Bahamas | 10,070.00 | - | 3,542.00 | 3,542.00 | 351.738 | 100.0% |
15 | Antigua and Barbuda | 442.00 | - | 153.00 | 153.00 | 346.154 | 100.0% |
16 | Singapore | 637.50 | - | 193.00 | 193.00 | 302.745 | 100.0% |
17 | Bahrain | 620.00 | - | 161.00 | 161.00 | 259.677 | 100.0% |
18 | Saint Lucia | 610.00 | - | 158.00 | 158.00 | 259.016 | 100.0% |
19 | Norway | 324,220.00 | 2,515.00 | 83,281.00 | 85,796.00 | 256.866 | 97.1% |
Niue | 260.00 | - | 64.00 | 64.00 | 246.154 | 100.0% | |
20 | Cape Verde | 4,033.00 | - | 965.00 | 965.00 | 239.276 | 100.0% |
21 | Barbados | 430.00 | - | 97.00 | 97.00 | 225.581 | 100.0% |
22 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 389.00 | - | 84.00 | 84.00 | 215.938 | 100.0% |
23 | São Tomé and Príncipe | 1,001.00 | - | 209.00 | 209.00 | 208.791 | 100.0% |
24 | Dominica | 754.00 | - | 148.00 | 148.00 | 196.286 | 100.0% |
25 | Solomon Islands | 27,540.00 | - | 5,313.00 | 5,313.00 | 192.919 | 100.0% |
26 | Denmark | 42,394.00 | 68.00 | 7,314.00 | 7,382.00 | 172.524 | 99.1% |
27 | Vanuatu | 14,760.00 | - | 2,528.00 | 2,528.00 | 171.274 | 100.0% |
28 | Comoros | 2,170.00 | - | 340.00 | 340.00 | 156.682 | 100.0% |
29 | Samoa | 2,850.00 | - | 403.00 | 403.00 | 141.404 | 100.0% |
30 | Philippines | 298,170.00 | - | 36,289.00 | 36,289.00 | 121.706 | 100.0% |
31 | Greece | 130,800.00 | 1,160.00 | 14,880.00 | 16,040.00 | 113.761 | 92.8% |
32 | Croatia | 56,414.00 | 2,197.00 | 5,835.00 | 8,032.00 | 103.432 | 72.6% |
33 | Jamaica | 10,830.00 | - | 1,022.00 | 1,022.00 | 94.367 | 100.0% |
34 | Estonia | 43,211.00 | 633.00 | 3,794.00 | 4,427.00 | 87.802 | 85.7% |
35 | Mauritius | 2,030.00 | - | 177.00 | 177.00 | 87.192 | 100.0% |
36 | Japan | 374,744.00 | - | 29,751.00 | 29,751.00 | 79.390 | 100.0% |
37 | Trinidad and Tobago | 5,128.00 | - | 362.00 | 362.00 | 70.593 | 100.0% |
38 | Cyprus | 9,240.00 | - | 648.00 | 648.00 | 70.130 | 100.0% |
39 | Haiti | 27,560.00 | 360.00 | 1,771.00 | 2,131.00 | 64.260 | 83.1% |
40 | Fiji | 18,270.00 | - | 1,129.00 | 1,129.00 | 61.795 | 100.0% |
41 | New Zealand | 268,680.00 | - | 15,134.00 | 15,134.00 | 56.327 | 100.0% |
42 | United Kingdom | 241,590.00 | 360.00 | 12,429.00 | 12,789.00 | 51.447 | 97.2% |
43 | Iceland | 100,329.00 | - | 4,988.00 | 4,988.00 | 49.716 | 100.0% |
44 | Qatar | 11,437.00 | 60.00 | 563.00 | 623.00 | 49.226 | 90.4% |
45 | Republic of China (Taiwan) | 32,260.00 | - | 1,566.30 | 1,566.30 | 48.552 | 100.0% |
46 | Timor-Leste | 15,007.00 | 228.00 | 706.00 | 934.00 | 47.045 | 75.6% |
47 | Cuba | 110,860.00 | 29.00 | 3,735.00 | 3,764.00 | 33.691 | 99.2% |
48 | Panama | 75,990.00 | 555.00 | 2,490.00 | 3,045.00 | 32.767 | 81.8% |
49 | Brunei | 5,270.00 | 381.00 | 161.00 | 542.00 | 30.550 | 29.7% |
50 | Indonesia | 1,826,440.00 | 2,830.00 | 54,716.00 | 57,546.00 | 29.958 | 95.1% |
51 | Kuwait | 17,820.00 | 462.00 | 499.00 | 961.00 | 28.002 | 51.9% |
52 | Dominican Republic | 48,380.00 | 275.00 | 1,288.00 | 1,563.00 | 26.623 | 82.4% |
53 | Italy | 294,020.00 | 1,932.20 | 7,600.00 | 9,532.20 | 25.849 | 79.7% |
54 | Costa Rica | 50,660.00 | 639.00 | 1,290.00 | 1,929.00 | 25.464 | 66.9% |
55 | South Korea | 98,190.00 | 238.00 | 2,413.00 | 2,651.00 | 24.575 | 91.0% |
56 | Canada | 9,220,970.00 | 8,893.00 | 202,080.00 | 210,973.00 | 21.915 | 95.8% |
57 | Lebanon | 10,280.00 | 454.00 | 225.00 | 679.00 | 21.887 | 33.1% |
58 | Montenegro | 13,812.00 | 625.00 | 294.00 | 919.00 | 21.286 | 32.0% |
59 | Ireland | 68,890.00 | 360.00 | 1,448.00 | 1,808.00 | 21.019 | 80.1% |
60 | North Korea | 120,410.00 | 1,673.00 | 2,495.00 | 4,168.00 | 20.721 | 59.9% |
61 | Sri Lanka | 64,740.00 | - | 1,340.00 | 1,340.00 | 20.698 | 100.0% |
62 | Portugal | 91,951.00 | 1,214.00 | 1,793.00 | 3,007.00 | 19.500 | 59.6% |
63 | Eritrea | 121,320.00 | 1,630.00 | 2,234.00 | 3,864.00 | 18.414 | 57.8% |
64 | Belize | 22,800.00 | 516.00 | 386.00 | 902.00 | 16.930 | 42.8% |
65 | United Arab Emirates | 82,880.00 | 867.00 | 1,318.00 | 2,185.00 | 15.903 | 60.3% |
66 | El Salvador | 20,720.00 | 545.00 | 307.00 | 852.00 | 14.817 | 36.0% |
67 | Djibouti | 21,980.00 | 506.00 | 314.00 | 820.00 | 14.286 | 38.3% |
68 | Malaysia | 328,550.00 | 2,669.00 | 4,675.00 | 7,344.00 | 14.229 | 63.7% |
69 | Israel | 20,330.00 | 1,017.00 | 273.00 | 1,290.00 | 13.428 | 21.2% |
70 | Netherlands | 33,883.00 | 1,027.00 | 451.00 | 1,478.00 | 13.311 | 30.5% |
71 | Albania | 27,398.00 | 720.00 | 362.00 | 1,082.00 | 13.213 | 33.5% |
72 | Guinea-Bissau | 28,000.00 | 724.00 | 350.00 | 1,074.00 | 12.500 | 32.6% |
73 | Papua New Guinea | 452,860.00 | 820.00 | 5,152.00 | 5,972.00 | 11.377 | 86.3% |
74 | Vietnam | 325,360.00 | 4,639.00 | 3,444.00 | 8,083.00 | 10.585 | 42.6% |
75 | Equatorial Guinea | 28,051.00 | 539.00 | 296.00 | 835.00 | 10.552 | 35.4% |
76 | Spain | 499,542.00 | 1,917.80 | 4,964.00 | 6,882.00 | 9.937 | 72.1% |
77 | Turkey | 770,760.00 | 2,627.00 | 7,200.00 | 9,827.00 | 9.341 | 73.3% |
78 | Azerbaijan | 86,100.00 | 2,013.00 | 800.00 | 2,813.00 | 9.292 | 28.4% |
79 | Chile | 748,800.00 | 6,171.00 | 6,435.00 | 12,606.00 | 8.594 | 51.0% |
80 | Madagascar | 581,540.00 | - | 4,828.00 | 4,828.00 | 8.302 | 100.0% |
81 | Latvia | 64,589.00 | 1,150.00 | 531.00 | 1,681.00 | 8.221 | 31.6% |
82 | Ecuador | 276,840.00 | 2,010.00 | 2,237.00 | 4,247.00 | 8.080 | 52.7% |
83 | Gambia | 10,000.00 | 740.00 | 80.00 | 820.00 | 8.000 | 9.8% |
84 | Sweden | 410,934.00 | 2,205.00 | 3,218.00 | 5,423.00 | 7.831 | 59.3% |
85 | Nicaragua | 120,254.00 | 1,231.00 | 910.00 | 2,141.00 | 7.567 | 42.5% |
86 | Tunisia | 155,360.00 | 1,424.00 | 1,148.00 | 2,572.00 | 7.389 | 44.6% |
87 | Honduras | 112,492.00 | 1,520.00 | 820.00 | 2,340.00 | 7.289 | 35.0% |
88 | Germany | 349,223.00 | 3,621.00 | 2,389.00 | 6,010.00 | 6.841 | 39.8% |
89 | Oman | 309,500.00 | 1,374.00 | 2,092.00 | 3,466.00 | 6.759 | 60.4% |
90 | Thailand | 511,770.00 | 4,863.00 | 3,219.00 | 8,082.00 | 6.290 | 39.8% |
91 | France | 545,630.00 | 2,889.00 | 3,427.00 | 6,316.00 | 6.281 | 54.3% |
92 | Liberia | 96,320.00 | 1,585.00 | 579.00 | 2,164.00 | 6.011 | 26.8% |
93 | Sierra Leone | 71,620.00 | 958.00 | 402.00 | 1,360.00 | 5.613 | 29.6% |
94 | Mexico | 1,923,040.00 | 4,538.00 | 9,330.00 | 13,868.00 | 4.852 | 67.3% |
95 | Somalia | 627,337.00 | 2,366.00 | 3,025.00 | 5,391.00 | 4.822 | 56.1% |
96 | Ukraine | 603,700.00 | 4,558.00 | 2,782.00 | 7,340.00 | 4.608 | 37.9% |
97 | Georgia | 69,700.00 | 1,461.00 | 310.00 | 1,771.00 | 4.448 | 17.5% |
98 | Bangladesh | 133,910.00 | 4,246.00 | 580.00 | 4,826.00 | 4.331 | 12.0% |
99 | Western Sahara | 266,000.00 | 2,046.00 | 1,110.00 | 3,156.00 | 4.173 | 35.2% |
100 | Morocco | 446,300.00 | 2,017.90 | 1,835.00 | 3,853.00 | 4.112 | 47.6% |
101 | Uruguay | 173,620.00 | 1,564.00 | 660.00 | 2,224.00 | 3.801 | 29.7% |
102 | Guatemala | 108,430.00 | 1,687.00 | 400.00 | 2,087.00 | 3.689 | 19.2% |
103 | Finland | 305,470.00 | 2,628.00 | 1,126.00 | 3,754.00 | 3.686 | 30.0% |
104 | Turkmenistan | 488,100.00 | 3,736.00 | 1,768.00 | 5,504.00 | 3.622 | 32.1% |
105 | Yemen | 527,970.00 | 1,746.00 | 1,906.00 | 3,652.00 | 3.610 | 52.2% |
106 | Gabon | 257,667.00 | 2,551.00 | 885.00 | 3,436.00 | 3.435 | 25.8% |
107 | Australia | 7,617,930.00 | - | 25,760.00 | 25,760.00 | 3.381 | 100.0% |
108 | Bulgaria | 110,550.00 | 1,808.00 | 354.00 | 2,162.00 | 3.202 | 16.4% |
109 | Venezuela | 882,050.00 | 4,993.00 | 2,800.00 | 7,793.00 | 3.174 | 35.9% |
110 | Mozambique | 784,090.00 | 4,571.00 | 2,470.00 | 7,041.00 | 3.150 | 35.1% |
111 | Colombia | 1,038,700.00 | 6,004.00 | 3,208.00 | 9,212.00 | 3.088 | 34.8% |
112 | Myanmar | 657,740.00 | 5,876.00 | 1,930.00 | 7,806.00 | 2.934 | 24.7% |
113 | Senegal | 192,000.00 | 2,640.00 | 531.00 | 3,171.00 | 2.766 | 16.7% |
114 | Cambodia | 176,520.00 | 2,572.00 | 443.00 | 3,015.00 | 2.510 | 14.7% |
115 | Egypt | 995,450.00 | 2,689.00 | 2,450.00 | 5,139.00 | 2.461 | 47.7% |
116 | Suriname | 161,470.00 | 1,707.00 | 386.00 | 2,093.00 | 2.391 | 18.4% |
117 | India | 2,973,190.00 | 14,103.00 | 7,000.00 | 21,103.00 | 2.354 | 33.2% |
118 | Ghana | 230,020.00 | 2,093.00 | 539.00 | 2,632.00 | 2.343 | 20.5% |
119 | Guyana | 196,850.00 | 2,462.00 | 459.00 | 2,921.00 | 2.332 | 15.7% |
120 | Slovenia | 20,253.00 | 1,334.00 | 46.60 | 1,380.60 | 2.301 | 3.4% |
121 | South Africa | 1,219,912.00 | 4,750.00 | 2,798.00 | 7,548.00 | 2.294 | 37.1% |
122 | Russia | 16,995,800.00 | 19,917.00 | 37,653.00 | 57,570.00 | 2.215 | 65.4% |
123 | Belgium | 30,278.00 | 1,379.00 | 66.50 | 1,445.50 | 2.196 | 4.6% |
124 | United States | 9,158,960.00 | 12,219.00 | 19,924.00 | 32,143.00 | 2.175 | 62.0% |
125 | Iran | 1,636,000.00 | 5,440.00 | 3,180.00 | 8,620.00 | 1.944 | 36.9% |
126 | Namibia | 825,418.00 | 3,824.00 | 1,572.00 | 5,396.00 | 1.904 | 29.1% |
127 | Peru | 1,280,000.00 | 5,536.00 | 2,414.00 | 7,950.00 | 1.886 | 30.4% |
128 | Argentina | 2,736,690.00 | 9,665.00 | 4,989.00 | 14,654.00 | 1.823 | 34.0% |
129 | Côte d'Ivoire | 318,000.00 | 3,110.00 | 515.00 | 3,625.00 | 1.619 | 14.2% |
130 | Poland | 304,465.00 | 2,888.00 | 491.00 | 3,379.00 | 1.613 | 14.5% |
131 | Tanzania | 886,037.00 | 3,402.00 | 1,424.00 | 4,826.00 | 1.607 | 29.5% |
132 | People's Republic of China | 9,326,410.00 | 22,147.00 | 14,500.00 | 36,647.00 | 1.555 | 39.6% |
133 | Lithuania | 65,200.00 | 1,273.00 | 99.00 | 1,372.00 | 1.518 | 7.2% |
134 | Pakistan | 778,720.00 | 6,774.00 | 1,046.00 | 7,820.00 | 1.343 | 13.4% |
135 | Guinea | 245,857.00 | 3,399.00 | 320.00 | 3,719.00 | 1.302 | 8.6% |
136 | Angola | 1,246,700.00 | 5,198.00 | 1,600.00 | 6,798.00 | 1.283 | 23.5% |
137 | Saudi Arabia | 2,217,949.00 | 4,415.00 | 2,640.00 | 7,055.00 | 1.190 | 37.4% |
138 | Kazakhstan | 2,669,800.00 | 12,012.00 | 2,964.00 | 14,976.00 | 1.110 | 19.8% |
139 | Benin | 110,620.00 | 1,989.00 | 121.00 | 2,110.00 | 1.094 | 5.7% |
140 | Syria | 184,050.00 | 2,253.00 | 193.00 | 2,446.00 | 1.049 | 7.9% |
141 | Togo | 54,385.00 | 1,647.00 | 56.00 | 1,703.00 | 1.030 | 3.3% |
142 | Libya | 1,759,540.00 | 4,383.00 | 1,770.00 | 6,153.00 | 1.006 | 28.8% |
143 | Uzbekistan | 425,400.00 | 6,221.00 | 420.00 | 6,641.00 | 0.987 | 6.3% |
144 | Romania | 230,340.00 | 2,508.00 | 225.00 | 2,733.00 | 0.977 | 8.2% |
145 | Kenya | 569,250.00 | 3,446.00 | 536.00 | 3,982.00 | 0.942 | 13.5% |
146 | Nigeria | 910,768.00 | 4,047.00 | 853.00 | 4,900.00 | 0.937 | 17.4% |
147 | Brazil | 8,456,510.00 | 15,735.00 | 7,367.00 | 23,102.00 | 0.871 | 31.9% |
148 | Cameroon | 469,440.00 | 4,591.00 | 402.00 | 4,993.00 | 0.856 | 8.1% |
149 | Mauritania | 1,030,400.00 | 5,074.00 | 754.00 | 5,828.00 | 0.732 | 12.9% |
150 | Republic of the Congo | 341,500.00 | 5,504.00 | 169.00 | 5,673.00 | 0.495 | 3.0% |
151 | Algeria | 2,381,740.00 | 6,343.00 | 998.00 | 7,341.00 | 0.419 | 13.6% |
152 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 51,129.00 | 1,459.00 | 20.00 | 1,479.00 | 0.391 | 1.4% |
153 | Sudan | 2,376,000.00 | 7,687.00 | 853.00 | 8,540.00 | 0.359 | 10.0% |
154 | Jordan | 88,884.00 | 1,619.00 | 26.00 | 1,645.00 | 0.293 | 1.6% |
155 | Iraq | 432,162.00 | 3,631.00 | 58.00 | 3,689.00 | 0.134 | 1.6% |
156 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 2,267,600.00 | 10,744.00 | 37.00 | 10,781.00 | 0.016 | 0.3% |
157 | Afghanistan | 647,500.00 | 5,529.00 | - | 5,529.00 | - | 0.0% |
158 | Andorra | 468.00 | 120.30 | - | 120.30 | - | 0.0% |
159 | Armenia | 28,400.00 | 1,254.00 | - | 1,254.00 | - | 0.0% |
160 | Austria | 82,738.00 | 2,562.00 | - | 2,562.00 | - | 0.0% |
161 | Burundi | 25,650.00 | 974.00 | - | 974.00 | - | 0.0% |
162 | Burkina Faso | 273,800.00 | 3,192.00 | - | 3,192.00 | - | 0.0% |
163 | Bhutan | 47,000.00 | 1,075.00 | - | 1,075.00 | - | 0.0% |
164 | Belarus | 207,600.00 | 3,098.00 | - | 3,098.00 | - | 0.0% |
165 | Bolivia | 1,084,390.00 | 6,743.00 | - | 6,743.00 | - | 0.0% |
166 | Botswana | 585,370.00 | 4,013.00 | - | 4,013.00 | - | 0.0% |
167 | Central African Republic | 622,984.00 | 5,203.00 | - | 5,203.00 | - | 0.0% |
168 | Chad | 1,259,200.00 | 5,968.00 | - | 5,968.00 | - | 0.0% |
169 | Czech Republic | 77,276.00 | 1,881.00 | - | 1,881.00 | - | 0.0% |
170 | Ethiopia | 1,119,683.00 | 5,311.00 | - | 5,311.00 | - | 0.0% |
171 | Hungary | 92,340.00 | 2,009.00 | - | 2,009.00 | - | 0.0% |
172 | Kosovo | 10,887.00 | 700.70 | - | 700.70 | - | 0.0% |
173 | Kyrgyzstan | 191,300.00 | 3,878.00 | - | 3,878.00 | - | 0.0% |
174 | Laos | 230,800.00 | 5,083.00 | - | 5,083.00 | - | 0.0% |
175 | Lesotho | 30,355.00 | 909.00 | - | 909.00 | - | 0.0% |
176 | Liechtenstein | 160.00 | 76.00 | - | 76.00 | - | 0.0% |
177 | Luxembourg | 2,586.00 | 359.00 | - | 359.00 | - | 0.0% |
178 | Macedonia | 24,856.00 | 748.00 | - | 748.00 | - | 0.0% |
179 | Malawi | 94,080.00 | 2,881.00 | - | 2,881.00 | - | 0.0% |
180 | Mali | 1,220,000.00 | 7,243.00 | - | 7,243.00 | - | 0.0% |
181 | Moldova | 33,371.00 | 1,389.00 | - | 1,389.00 | - | 0.0% |
182 | Mongolia | 1,565,000.00 | 8,114.00 | - | 8,114.00 | - | 0.0% |
183 | Nepal | 136,800.00 | 2,926.00 | - | 2,926.00 | - | 0.0% |
184 | Niger | 1,266,700.00 | 5,697.00 | - | 5,697.00 | - | 0.0% |
185 | Paraguay | 397,300.00 | 3,920.00 | - | 3,920.00 | - | 0.0% |
186 | Rwanda | 24,948.00 | 893.00 | - | 893.00 | - | 0.0% |
187 | Serbia | 77,474.00 | 2027.00 | - | 2027.00 | - | 0.0% |
188 | San Marino | 60.50 | 39.00 | - | 39.00 | - | 0.0% |
189 | Switzerland | 39,770.00 | 1,852.00 | - | 1,852.00 | - | 0.0% |
190 | Slovakia | 48,800.00 | 1,355.00 | - | 1,355.00 | - | 0.0% |
191 | Swaziland | 17,203.00 | 535.00 | - | 535.00 | - | 0.0% |
192 | Tajikistan | 142,700.00 | 3,651.00 | - | 3,651.00 | - | 0.0% |
193 | Uganda | 199,710.00 | 2,698.00 | - | 2,698.00 | - | 0.0% |
194 | Vatican City | 0.44 | 3.20 | - | 3.20 | - | 0.0% |
195 | Zambia | 740,724.00 | 5,664.00 | - | 5,664.00 | - | 0.0% |
196 | Zimbabwe | 386,670.00 | 3,066.00 | - | 3,066.00 | - | 0.0% |