Maps
Visualized: The World’s 100 Smallest Countries
The World’s 100 Smallest Countries
National borders may be mere human constructs, but they are powerful ones.
Russia, Canada, the U.S., and so on—it’s easy to focus on the countries with the largest landmasses and seemingly endless borders. Their sheer size makes them hard to ignore, and their natural resources are often vast.
But with the above graphic from TitleMax, we can focus on the power of small.
From economic might to religious influence, many of the smallest countries in the world are surprisingly powerful. Let’s take a closer look at the world’s 100 smallest countries and their spheres of influence.
Rank | Country | Size (mi²) |
---|---|---|
1 | Vatican City | 0.19 |
2 | Monaco | 0.78 |
3 | Nauru | 8.1 |
4 | Tuvalu | 10 |
5 | San Marino | 24 |
6 | Liechtenstein | 62 |
7 | Marshall Islands | 70 |
8 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 101 |
9 | Maldives | 120 |
10 | Malta | 122 |
11 | Grenada | 133 |
12 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 150 |
13 | Barbados | 170 |
14 | Antigua and Barbuda | 171 |
15 | Seychelles | 175 |
16 | Palau | 177 |
17 | Andorra | 181 |
18 | Saint Lucia | 238 |
19 | Federated States of Micronesia | 271 |
20 | Singapore | 280 |
21 | Tonga | 288 |
22 | Dominica | 290 |
23 | Bahrain | 300 |
24 | Kiribati | 313 |
25 | São Tomé and Príncipe | 372 |
26 | Comoros | 719 |
27 | Mauritius | 790 |
28 | Luxembourg | 998 |
29 | Samoa | 1,097 |
30 | Cape Verde | 1,557 |
31 | Trinidad and Tobago | 1,980 |
32 | Brunei | 2,226 |
33 | Cyprus | 3,572 |
34 | Lebanon | 4,036 |
35 | Jamaica | 4,244 |
36 | The Gambia | 4,361 |
37 | Qatar | 4,473 |
38 | Vanuatu | 4,706 |
39 | Montenegro | 5,333 |
40 | The Bahamas | 5,383 |
41 | imor-Leste | 5,760 |
42 | Eswatini | 6,704 |
43 | Kuwait | 6,880 |
44 | Fiji | 7,055 |
45 | Slovenia | 7,827 |
46 | Israel | 8,020 |
47 | El Salvador | 8,124 |
48 | Belize | 8,867 |
49 | Djibouti | 9,000 |
50 | North Macedonia | 9,928 |
51 | Rwanda | 10,169 |
52 | Haiti | 10,710 |
53 | Burundi | 10,747 |
54 | Equatorial Guinea | 10,831 |
55 | Albania | 11,100 |
56 | Solomon Islands | 11,157 |
57 | Armenia | 11,484 |
58 | Lesotho | 11,720 |
59 | Belgium | 11,787 |
60 | Moldova | 13,068 |
61 | Guinea-Bissau | 13,948 |
62 | Bhutan | 14,824 |
63 | Switzerland | 15,940 |
64 | Netherlands | 16,160 |
65 | Denmark | 16,639 |
66 | Estonia | 17,462 |
67 | Dominican Republic | 18,792 |
68 | Slovakia | 18,933 |
69 | Costa Rica | 19,700 |
70 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 19,772 |
71 | Croatia | 21,851 |
72 | Togo | 21,925 |
73 | Latvia | 24,926 |
74 | Lithuania | 25,200 |
75 | Sri Lanka | 25,330 |
76 | Georgia | 26,900 |
77 | Ireland | 27,133 |
78 | Sierra Leone | 27,700 |
79 | Panama | 29,119 |
80 | Czech Republic | 30,450 |
81 | United Arab Emirates | 32,300 |
82 | Austria | 32,383 |
83 | Azerbaijan | 33,400 |
84 | Serbia | 34,116 |
85 | Jordan | 34,495 |
86 | Portugal | 35,560 |
87 | Hungary | 35,918 |
88 | South Korea | 38,690 |
89 | Iceland | 40,000 |
90 | Guatemala | 42,042 |
91 | Cuba | 42,426 |
92 | Bulgaria | 42,858 |
93 | Liberia | 43,000 |
94 | Honduras | 43,433 |
95 | Benin | 44,310 |
96 | Eritrea | 45,400 |
97 | Malawi | 45,747 |
98 | North Korea | 46,540 |
99 | Nicaragua | 50,337 |
100 | Greece | 50,949 |
Although several of the national borders shown above may be contested, the graphic gives us a clear overview of the globe’s smallest nations.
The Power of Small
Small size doesn’t mean less power. In many cases, it’s the contrary.
The Vatican—the smallest country on Earth at 0.19 square miles—is renowned for its leader and main inhabitant, the Pope. As leader of the Catholic Church, the pontiff and his papal staff make up a sizable part of the country’s tiny population of 825. Most of the Church’s 219 Cardinals, its leading dignitaries, live in their respective dioceses.
With more than 1.2 billion Roman Catholics in the world, the Vatican’s sphere of influence is of course far larger than its small physical size. Although the walls of the Vatican are situated inside the city of Rome, Italy, its centuries-old influence spans continents.
Nearly 40% of Roman Catholics live in the Americas, while the fastest-growing Catholic population can be found in Africa—home to more than 17% of the world’s Catholics.
Purchasing Power
Where the Vatican’s power lies in religion, plenty of spending power is held by the tiny country of Monaco, the second smallest country on Earth.
Situated along the French Riviera, Monaco is surrounded entirely by France—but it also sits fewer than 10 miles from the Italian border.
At 0.78 square miles, Monaco could be compared to the size of a large farm in the U.S. Midwest. Despite its small size, Monaco has a GDP of nearly US$7.2 billion, and boasts over 12,000 millionaires living within one square mile.
Along with Luxembourg and Liechtenstein—both of which are included in the smallest countries list—Monaco is one of the only countries globally with a GDP per capita higher than $100,000.
Switzerland and the Netherlands, both found in this graphic at ranks 63 and 64, also hold large shares of the global economy given their size. These two nations rank 20th and 17th in the world in economic output, respectively.
Similarly, Singapore is the 20th smallest country on the planet, but it ranks in the top 10 in terms of GDP per capita ($65,233) and sits in 34th place globally in terms of nominal GDP.
Perspective is Everything
To give us a better idea of just how small the tiniest countries are, let’s take a look at some simple size comparisons:
- Monaco could fit inside New York City’s Central Park, with room to spare
- Brunei is roughly the same size as Delaware
- Nicaragua, the largest country in Central America, is similar in size to the state of Mississippi
- Nauru is the smallest island nation, and smaller than Rhode Island
- North Korea is roughly the size of Pennsylvania
“Small,” of course, is a qualitative factor. It depends on your vantage point.
As of September 2020, there are 195 countries on Earth. Although this graphic shows the smallest countries in the world, it is worth noting that a list of the world’s 100 largest countries would also include some of the same countries on this list, including North Korea, Nicaragua, and Greece.
Is It A Small World Afterall?
Viewed from space, there are no borders on our tiny blue dot. But from ground level, we know how much power national borders hold.
Although globalization may make our world feel smaller, our nations significantly impact our lives, societally and economically.
And, as this chart shows, power comes in all sizes.
Demographics
Mapped: Population Growth by Region (1900-2050F)
In this visualization, we map the populations of major regions at three different points in time: 1900, 2000, and 2050 (forecasted).
Mapping Population Growth by Region
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
In fewer than 50 years, the world population has doubled in size, jumping from 4 to 8 billion.
In this visualization, we map the populations of major regions at three different points in time: 1900, 2000, and 2050 (forecasted). Figures come from Our World in Data as of March 2023, using the United Nations medium-fertility scenario.
Population by Continent (1900-2050F)
Asia was the biggest driver of global population growth over the course of the 20th century. In fact, the continent’s population grew by 2.8 billion people from 1900 to 2000, compared to just 680 million from the second on our list, Africa.
Region | 1900 | 2000 | 2050F |
---|---|---|---|
Asia | 931,021,418 | 3,735,089,775 | 5,291,555,919 |
Africa | 138,752,199 | 818,952,374 | 2,485,135,689 |
Europe | 406,610,221 | 727,917,165 | 704,398,730 |
North America | 104,231,973 | 486,364,446 | 679,488,449 |
South America | 41,330,704 | 349,634,344 | 491,078,697 |
Oceania | 5,936,615 | 31,223,133 | 57,834,753 |
World 🌐 | 1,627,883,130 | 6,149,181,237 | 9,709,492,237 |
China was the main source of Asia’s population expansion, though its population growth has slowed in recent years. That’s why in 2023, India surpassed China to become the world’s most populous country.
Southeast Asian countries like the Philippines and Indonesia have also been big drivers of Asia’s population boom to this point.
The Future: Africa to Hit 2.5 Billion by 2050
Under the UN’s medium-fertility scenario (all countries converge at a birthrate of 1.85 children per woman by 2050), Africa will solidify its place as the world’s second most populous region.
Three countries—Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Egypt—will account for roughly 30% of that 2.5 billion population figure.
Meanwhile, both North America and South America are expected to see a slowdown in population growth, while Europe is the only region that will shrink by 2050.
A century ago, Europe’s population was close to 30% of the world total. Today, that figure stands at less than 10%.
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