World Factbook
Spain
Reino de España
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Area
land
498,980 sq km
note
note: includes two autonomous cities (Ceuta and Melilla), 17 autonomous communities (including Balearic Islands and Canary Islands), and three small Spanish possessions off the coast of Morocco -- Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera
water
6,390 sq km
total
505,370 sq km
Climate
temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast
Terrain
large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees Mountains in north
Land use
other
12.3% (2023 est.)
forest
38.2% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
49.6% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 23% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 10.2% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 19.8% (2023 est.)
Location
Southwestern Europe, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, Bay of Biscay, and Pyrenees Mountains; southwest of France
Coastline
4,964 km
Elevation
lowest point
Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point
Pico de Teide (Tenerife) on Canary Islands 3,718 m
mean elevation
660 m
Irrigated land
38,012 sq km (2022)
Map references
Europe
Land boundaries
note
note: an additional 75-meter border segment exists between Morocco and the Spanish exclave of Penon de Velez de la Gomera
total
1,952.7 km
border countries
Andorra 63 km; France 646 km; Gibraltar 1.2 km; Portugal 1,224 km; Morocco (Ceuta) 8 km and Morocco (Melilla) 10.5 km
Maritime claims
contiguous zone
24 nm
territorial sea
12 nm
exclusive economic zone
200 nm (applies only to the Atlantic Ocean)
Natural hazards
periodic droughts, occasional flooding volcanism: volcanic activity in the Canary Islands, located off Africa's northwest coast; Teide (3,715 m) has been deemed a Decade Volcano by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; La Palma (2,426 m) is the most active of the Canary Islands volcanoes; Lanzarote is the only other historically active volcano
Geography - note
strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar; Spain controls a number of territories in northern Morocco, including the enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla and the islands of Penon de Velez de la Gomera, Penon de Alhucemas, and Islas Chafarinas; Spain's Canary Islands are one of four North Atlantic archipelagos that make up Macaronesia; the others are the Azores (Portugal), Madeira (Portugal), and Cabo Verde
Natural resources
coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten, mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land
Area - comparative
almost five times the size of Kentucky; slightly more than twice the size of Oregon
Geographic coordinates
40 00 N, 4 00 W
Population distribution
with the notable exception of Madrid, Sevilla, and Zaragoza, the largest urban agglomerations are found along the Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts; numerous smaller cities are spread throughout the interior; very dense settlement around the capital of Madrid, as well as the port city of Barcelona
Major rivers (by length in km)
Tagus river source (shared with Portugal [m]) - 1,006 km note: [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth