World Factbook
Afghanistan
Jamhuri-ye Islami-ye Afghanistan (prior to 15 August 2021; current country name is disputed)
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Area
land
652,230 sq km
water
0 sq km
total
652,230 sq km
Climate
arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers
Terrain
mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest
Land use
other
39.7% (2023 est.)
forest
1.9% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
58.4% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 12% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 0.4% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 46% (2023 est.)
Location
Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran
Coastline
0 km (landlocked)
Elevation
lowest point
Amu Darya 258 m
highest point
Noshak 7,492 m
mean elevation
1,884 m
Irrigated land
24,930 sq km (2022)
Map references
Asia
Land boundaries
total
5,987 km
border countries
China 91 km; Iran 921 km; Pakistan 2,670 km; Tajikistan 1,357 km; Turkmenistan 804 km; Uzbekistan 144 km
Maritime claims
none (landlocked)
Natural hazards
damaging earthquakes occur in Hindu Kush mountains; flooding; droughts
Geography - note
landlocked; the Hindu Kush mountains that run northeast to southwest divide the northern provinces from the rest of the country; the highest peaks are in the northern Vakhan (Wakhan Corridor)
Natural resources
natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones, arable land
Area - comparative
almost six times the size of Virginia; slightly smaller than Texas
Geographic coordinates
33 00 N, 65 00 E
Population distribution
populations tend to cluster in the foothills and periphery of the rugged Hindu Kush range; smaller groups are found in many of the country's interior valleys; in general, the east is more densely settled, while the south is sparsely populated
Major lakes (area sq km)
salt water lake(s)
Ab-e Istadah-ye Muqur (endorheic basin) - 520 sq km
Major watersheds (area sq km)
Indian Ocean drainage
Indus (1,081,718 sq km)
Internal (endorheic basin) drainage
Amu Darya (534,739 sq km); Tarim Basin (1,152,448 sq km)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Amu Darya (shared with Tajikistan [s], Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan [m]) - 2,620 km; Helmand river source (shared with Iran) - 1,130 km note: [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth