Russia overview
Russia lies in Eastern Europe, part of Europe. In formal use it is Russian Federation. Moscow is the capital.
Around 143.5 million people live there, placing it 9th of 249 by population — between Bangladesh above it and Ethiopia below. Within Eastern Europe alone it is the 1st largest of 4 and the 1st most populous.
By land area it covers 17,098,242 km², which ranks it 1st of the 249 countries and territories in this dataset — the largest of them all, ahead of Antarctica. For scale, it is roughly twice the size of Canada.
People, population and language
Population divided by land area gives roughly 8.4 people per square kilometre, which makes it very thinly populated. For comparison, the median entry on this list sits near 91 per square kilometre.
Russian is the only official language. Russian is one of the widely shared official languages here, listed by 7 other entries including Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Someone from Russia is a Russian.
Inside Europe it places 1st of 53 by population, and it accounts for 74% of everyone living in Eastern Europe.
Russia and its neighbours, side by side
Russia has 14 land neighbours, and together they hold 1,574,364,585 people — about 11 times Russia's own population. Sharing a frontier with that much weight on the other side shapes trade, migration and language in ways the map alone does not show.
| Neighbour | Population | Area (km²) | vs Russia by area |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | 1,408,975,000 | 9,706,961 | 1.8× smaller |
| Kazakhstanlandlocked | 20,592,571 | 2,724,900 | 6.3× smaller |
| Mongolialandlocked | 3,524,788 | 1,564,110 | 11× smaller |
| Ukraine | 37,860,221 | 603,500 | 28× smaller |
| Finland | 5,619,911 | 338,424 | 51× smaller |
| Norway | 5,572,279 | 323,802 | 53× smaller |
| Poland | 36,559,233 | 312,679 | 55× smaller |
| Belaruslandlocked | 9,132,629 | 207,600 | 82× smaller |
| North Korea | 26,498,823 | 120,538 | 142× smaller |
| Azerbaijanlandlocked | 10,202,830 | 86,600 | 197× smaller |
| Georgia | 3,699,557 | 69,700 | 245× smaller |
| Lithuania | 2,888,278 | 65,300 | 262× smaller |
| Latvia | 1,866,124 | 64,559 | 265× smaller |
| Estonia | 1,372,341 | 45,227 | 378× smaller |
By area the largest neighbour is China and the smallest is Estonia; by population China is the heaviest presence on the border. Taken together the neighbours hold more people than Russia does, which is the usual situation for a country with several borders and rarely a comfortable one.
Russia within Eastern Europe
Within Eastern Europe, Russia is the most populous of the 4 entries this site lists, and the largest by area as well. Ukraine is next in line by population.
Every entry in Eastern Europe has its own guide here, so if you want to work through the whole neighbourhood rather than one country at a time, Ukraine is the place to carry on.
Russia at a glance
- Capital
- Moscow
- Population
- 143,533,851
- Area
- 17,098,242 km²
- Region
- Eastern Europe, Europe
- Languages
- Russian
- Currency
- Russian ruble (RUB)
- Calling code
- +7
- Internet TLD
- .ru
- People per km²
- 8
Where Russia is and what surrounds it
The coordinates the dataset gives are 60.0° N, 100.0° E, which puts it in the northern hemisphere, roughly 6,679 km from the equator, in what geographers would call high-latitude latitudes.
The Arctic Circle runs through or very close to it. Canada, Sweden and Norway sit at almost exactly the same latitude on other parts of the globe.
14 countries share a land border with it: Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Kazakhstan, North Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Mongolia, Norway, Poland and Ukraine. The largest of them by area is China, which is also the most populous. Together those neighbours hold about 1.57 billion people.
Unlike its landlocked neighbours it reaches the sea directly, while also sharing land frontiers.
Where Russia is on the map
The map below is centred on Russia at roughly 60.00°, 100.00°. Pan and zoom to see how it sits against its surroundings — the shape of a country's borders explains a surprising amount about its history.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
How big is Russia, really?
Put next to every other entry on this site, Russia ranks 1st of 249 by area and 9th by population. That works out at 11.4% of the combined land area of all 249 entries and 1.8% of their combined population. Those denominators matter: this list includes territories and dependencies as well as UN member states, so a rank here is not the same as a rank among sovereign countries.
For a sense of scale, the entries immediately either side of Russia in the size ordering are Antarctica at 14,000,000 km², against Russia's 17,098,242 km². If you can already picture one of those, you can picture this one.
Density tells a different story from either raw figure. Russia averages 8 people per square kilometre of total area, which makes it thinly settled by global standards — 226th of the 247 entries that have both a population and a measured area. Total area includes inland water, so the true figure for habitable land is higher than this.
Money and language in Russia
The Russian ruble (RUB) is used only in Russia among the 249 entries on this site. Its own currency is one of the clearest markers of an economy that sets its own monetary policy rather than importing somebody else's.
Language reaches wider still. Russian is listed for 8 entries here, Russia among them, so a visitor who speaks it can be understood across a large part of the map. Shared language tends to outlive the empires, trade routes and migrations that spread it, which is why the linguistic map and the political one rarely line up.
Also lists Russian among its languages:
Currency, domain and dialling code
The currency is the Russian ruble (₽, RUB). No other entry in this dataset uses it, so the currency is specific to Russia.
Moscow is the city to remember for this country.
Its internet country code is .ru. Calls from overseas start with +7. Standard country codes: ru and RUS.
It holds a seat at the United Nations, one of 192 entries here that do. The other 57 entries are territories, dependencies or observers, which is why totals on this site run to 249 rather than the familiar 195.
Fun facts about Russia
- It lies about 6,679 km from the equator, in high-latitude latitudes.
- Within Eastern Europe it is the 1st largest of 4.
- People from Russia are known as Russians.
- The Arctic Circle runs across or very near it.
- Population density works out at roughly 8.4 people per square kilometre.
- Russian is official here and in 7 other entries worldwide.
Russia — frequently asked questions
- What is the capital of Russia?
- The capital of Russia is Moscow.
- What is the population of Russia?
- Russia has a population of about 143.5 million, which makes it the 9th most populous of the 249 countries and territories listed on this site. Bangladesh sits just above it and Ethiopia just below.
- What language is spoken in Russia?
- The official language of Russia is Russian. It is also official in 7 other entries on this list.
- What currency does Russia use?
- Russia uses the Russian ruble, written ₽ (currency code RUB). No other entry in this dataset uses it.
- How big is Russia?
- Russia covers 17,098,242 km², ranking 1st of 249 by land area. That makes it roughly twice the size of Canada.
- Where is Russia located?
- Russia is in Eastern Europe, part of Europe. Its reference coordinates are 60.0° north and 100.0° east, roughly 6,679 km from the equator in high-latitude latitudes.
- Is Russia a country?
- Yes. Russia is a sovereign state and one of the 192 UN members listed on this site.
- Which countries border Russia?
- Russia borders 14 countries: Azerbaijan, Belarus, China, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Kazakhstan, North Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Mongolia, Norway, Poland and Ukraine. China is the largest of them by area.
