World Factbook
Canada
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Area
land
9,093,507 sq km
water
891,163 sq km
total
9,984,670 sq km
Climate
varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in north
Terrain
mostly plains with mountains in west, lowlands in southeast
Land use
other
51.4% (2023 est.)
forest
42% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
6.5% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 4.3% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 0% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 2.1% (2023 est.)
Location
Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, and the Arctic Ocean on the north, north of the conterminous US
Coastline
202,080 km
note: the Canadian Arctic Archipelago -- consisting of 36,563 islands, several of them among the world's largest -- gives Canada the longest coastline in the world
Elevation
lowest point
Atlantic/Pacific/Arctic Oceans 0 m
highest point
Mount Logan 5,959 m
mean elevation
487 m
Irrigated land
9,045 sq km (2015)
Major aquifers
Northern Great Plains Aquifer
Map references
North America
Land boundaries
total
8,892 km
border countries
US 8,891 km (includes 2,475 km with Alaska); Denmark (Greenland) 1.3 km
Maritime claims
contiguous zone
24 nm
territorial sea
12 nm
continental shelf
200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone
200 nm
Natural hazards
continuous permafrost in north is a serious obstacle to development; cyclonic storms form east of the Rocky Mountains, a result of the mixing of air masses from the Arctic, Pacific, and North American interior, and produce most of the country's rain and snow east of the mountains volcanism: the vast majority of volcanoes in Western Canada's Coast Mountains remain dormant
Geography - note
note 1: second-largest country in the world (after Russia) and largest in the Americas; strategic location between Russia and US via north polar route; approximately 90% of the population is concentrated within 160 km (100 mi) of the US border note 2: Canada has more fresh water than any other country, and almost 9% of Canadian territory is water; Canada has at least 2 million and possibly over 3 million lakes, more than all other countries combined
Natural resources
bauxite, iron ore, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, uranium, rare earth elements, molybdenum, potash, diamonds, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydropower
Area - comparative
slightly larger than the US
Geographic coordinates
60 00 N, 95 00 W
Population distribution
vast majority of the population lives in a discontinuous band within approximately 300 km (186 mi) of the southern border with the United States; the most populated province is Ontario, followed by Quebec and British Columbia
Major lakes (area sq km)
fresh water lake(s)
Huron* - 35,972 sq km; Great Bear Lake - 31,328 sq km; Superior* - 28,754 sq km; Great Slave Lake - 28,568 sq km; Lake Winnipeg - 24,387 sq km; Erie* - 12,776 sq km; Ontario* - 9,790 sq km; Lake Athabasca - 7,935 sq km; Reindeer Lake - 6,650 sq km; Nettilling Lake - 5,542 sq km note - Great Lakes* area shown as Canadian waters
Major watersheds (area sq km)
note
note: watersheds shared with the US shown with *
Arctic Ocean drainage
Mackenzie (1,706,388 sq km)
Pacific Ocean drainage
Yukon* (847,620 sq km, Canada only 823,800 sq km), Columbia* (657,501 sq km, Canada only 103,000 sq km)
Atlantic Ocean drainage
Mississippi* (Gulf of America) (3,202,185 sq km, Canada only 32,000 sq km), Nelson (Hudson Bay) (1,093,141 sq km), Saint Lawrence* (1,049,636 sq km, Canada only 839,200 sq km)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Mackenzie - 4,241 km; Yukon river source (shared with the US [m]) - 3,185 km; Saint Lawrence river mouth (shared with US) - 3,058 km; Nelson - 2,570 km; Columbia river source (shared with the US [m]) - 1,953 km; Churchill - 1,600 km; Fraser - 1,368 km; Ottawa - 1,271 km; Athabasca - 1,231 km; North Saskatchewan - 1,220 km; Liard - 1,115 km note: [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth