World Factbook
Pakistan
Jamhuryat Islami Pakistan
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Area
land
770,875 sq km
water
25,220 sq km
total
796,095 sq km
Climate
mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north
Terrain
divided into three major geographic areas: the northern highlands, the Indus River plain in the center and east, and the Balochistan Plateau in the south and west
Land use
other
49.2% (2023 est.)
forest
4.1% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
46.7% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 39.3% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 1% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 6.5% (2023 est.)
Location
Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, between India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the west and China in the north
Coastline
1,046 km
Elevation
lowest point
Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point
K2 (Mt. Godwin-Austen) 8,611 m
mean elevation
900 m
Irrigated land
194,200 sq km (2022)
Major aquifers
Indus Basin
Map references
Asia
Land boundaries
total
7,257 km
border countries
Afghanistan 2,670 km; China 438 km; India 3,190 km; Iran 959 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
frequent earthquakes, occasionally severe especially in north and west; flooding along the Indus after heavy rains (July and August)
Geography - note
controls Khyber Pass and Bolan Pass, traditional invasion routes between Central Asia and India
Natural resources
arable land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited petroleum, poor quality coal, iron ore, copper, salt, limestone
Area - comparative
slightly more than five times the size of Georgia; slightly less than twice the size of California
Geographic coordinates
30 00 N, 70 00 E
Population distribution
the Indus River and its tributaries attract most of the settlement, with Punjab province the most densely populated
Major watersheds (area sq km)
Indian Ocean drainage
Indus (1,081,718 sq km)
Internal (endorheic basin) drainage
Tarim Basin (1,152,448 sq km), (Aral Sea basin) Amu Darya (534,739 sq km)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Indus river mouth (shared with China [s] and India) - 3,610 km; Sutlej river mouth (shared with China [s] and India) - 1,372 km; Chenab river mouth (shared with India [s]) - 1,086 km note: [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth