Geography of Spain
| Continent | Europe |
|---|---|
| Region | Southern Europe North Africa Iberian Peninsula Macaronesia |
| Area | Ranked 50 |
| • Total | 506,030 km2 (195,380 sq mi) |
| • Land | 98.96% |
| • Water | 1.04% |
| Coastline | 5,755 km (3,576 mi) |
| Borders | 1,917.8 km (1,191.7 mi) Portugal: 1,214 km (754 mi) France: 623 km (387 mi) Andorra: 63.7 km (39.6 mi) Morocco (Melilla): 9.6 km (5.97 mi) Morocco (Ceuta): 6.3 km (3.91 mi) Gibraltar (United Kingdom): 1.2 km (0.75 mi) |
| Highest point | Teide (Canary Islands) 3,715 m (12,188 ft) Mulhacén (Iberian Peninsula) 3,477 m (11,407 ft) |
| Lowest point | Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea 0 m (0 ft) (Sea level) |
| Longest river | Tagus 1,007 km (626 mi) |
| Largest lake | Lago de Sanabria |
| 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 |
| Natural resources | Coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten, mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land |
| Natural hazards | Periodic droughts, occasional flooding and volcanic activity in the Canary Islands |
| Exclusive economic zone | 1,039,233 km2 (401,250 mi2) |
Spain is a transcontinental country located in southwestern Europe and northern Africa, occupying about 84.6% of the Iberian Peninsula. Its territory includes a small exclave inside France called Llívia, the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, and several territories on or near the North African coast, including the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla and the plazas de soberanía (Islas Chafarinas, Islas de Alhucemas, Isla Perejil, and Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera).
The Spanish mainland is bordered to the south and east almost entirely by the Mediterranean Sea (except for the small British territory of Gibraltar); to the north by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay; and to the west by the Atlantic Ocean and Portugal. With a land area of 504,782 square kilometres (194,897 mi2) in the Iberian Peninsula, Spain is the largest country in Southern Europe, the second largest country in Western Europe (behind France), and the fourth largest country in the European continent (behind Russia, Ukraine, and France). It has an average altitude of 650 m.
Its total area including Spanish island territories is 505,370 km2 (195,124 sq mi) of which 499,542 km2 (192,874 sq mi) is land and 5,240 km2 (2,023 sq mi) is water. It has the 30th largest Exclusive Economic Zone of 1,039,233 km2 (401,250 mi2). Spain lies between latitudes 27° and 44° N, and longitudes 19° W and 5° E. Its Atlantic coast is 710 km (441 mi) long. The Pyrenees mountain range extends 435 km (270 mi) from the Mediterranean to the Bay of Biscay. In the extreme south of Spain's mainland lie the Straits of Gibraltar, which separate the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of Europe from Ceuta and Morocco in North Africa.