World Factbook
Bolivia
Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Area
land
1,083,301 sq km
water
15,280 sq km
total
1,098,581 sq km
Climate
varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid
Terrain
rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (Altiplano), hills, lowland plains of the Amazon Basin
Land use
other
13.5% (2023 est.)
forest
50.6% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
35.8% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 5.1% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 0.2% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 30.5% (2023 est.)
Location
Central South America, southwest of Brazil
Coastline
0 km (landlocked)
Elevation
lowest point
Rio Paraguay 90 m
highest point
Nevado Sajama 6,542 m
mean elevation
1,192 m
Irrigated land
2,972 sq km (2017)
Major aquifers
Amazon Basin
Map references
South America
Land boundaries
total
7,252 km
border countries
Argentina 942 km; Brazil 3,403 km; Chile 942 km; Paraguay 753 km; Peru 1,212 km
Maritime claims
none (landlocked)
Natural hazards
flooding in the northeast (March to April) volcanism: volcanic activity in Andes Mountains on the border with Chile; historically active volcanoes in this region are Irruputuncu (5,163 m), which last erupted in 1995, and the Olca-Paruma volcanic complex (5,762 m to 5,167 m)
Geography - note
landlocked; shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake (elevation 3,805 m), with Peru
Natural resources
lithium, tin, natural gas, petroleum, zinc, tungsten, antimony, silver, iron, lead, gold, timber, hydropower
Area - comparative
slightly less than three times the size of Montana
Geographic coordinates
17 00 S, 65 00 W
Population distribution
a high-altitude plain in the west between two cordillera of the Andes, known as the Altiplano, is the focal area for most of the population; a dense settlement pattern is also found in and around the city of Santa Cruz, located on the eastern side of the Andes
Major lakes (area sq km)
salt water lake(s)
Lago Poopo - 1,340 sq km
fresh water lake(s)
Lago Titicaca (shared with Peru) - 8,030 sq km
Major watersheds (area sq km)
Atlantic Ocean drainage
Amazon (6,145,186 sq km), Paraná (2,582,704 sq km)