Area comparison map:

slightly less than twice the size of Georgia; slightly larger than Arizona

Land boundaries:
0 km

Coastline:
36,289 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: irregular polygon extending up to 100 nm from coastline as defined by 1898 treaty; since late 1970s has also claimed polygonal-shaped area in South China Sea as wide as 285 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
[see also: Maritime claims - exclusive economic zone country ranks ]
continental shelf: to the depth of exploitation
[see also: Maritime claims - continental shelf country ranks ]

Climate:
tropical marine; northeast monsoon (November to April); southwest monsoon (May to October)
More Climate Details

Terrain:
mostly mountains with narrow to extensive coastal lowlands

Elevation:
mean elevation: 442 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
lowest point: Philippine Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Apo 2,954 m

Natural resources:
timber, petroleum, nickel, cobalt, silver, gold, salt, copper

Land use:
agricultural land: 41% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
arable land: 18.2% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - arable land country ranks ]
permanent crops: 17.8% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - permanent crops country ranks ]
permanent pasture: 5% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - permanent pasture country ranks ]
forest: 25.9% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 33.1% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
16,270 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population distribution:
population concentrated where good farmlands lie; highest concentrations are northwest and south-central Luzon, the southeastern extension of Luzon, and the islands of the Visayan Sea, particularly Cebu and Negros; Manila is home to one-eighth of the entire national population

Natural hazards:
astride typhoon belt, usually affected by 15 and struck by five to six cyclonic storms each year; landslides; active volcanoes; destructive earthquakes; tsunamis

volcanism: significant volcanic activity; Taal (311 m), which has shown recent unrest and may erupt in the near future, 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; Mayon (2,462 m), the country's most active volcano, erupted in 2009 forcing over 33,000 to be evacuated; other historically active volcanoes include Biliran, Babuyan Claro, Bulusan, Camiguin, Camiguin de Babuyanes, Didicas, Iraya, Jolo, Kanlaon, Makaturing, Musuan, Parker, Pinatubo, and Ragang; see note 2 under "Geography - note"

Environment - current issues:
uncontrolled deforestation especially in watershed areas; illegal mining and logging; soil erosion; air and water pollution in major urban centers; coral reef degradation; increasing pollution of coastal mangrove swamps that are important fish breeding grounds; coastal erosion; dynamite fishing; wildlife extinction

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants

Geography - note:

note 1: for decades, the Philippine archipelago was reported as having 7,107 islands; in 2016, the national mapping authority reported that hundreds of new islands had been discovered and increased the number of islands to 7,641 - though not all of the new islands have been verified; the country is favorably located in relation to many of Southeast Asia's main water bodies: the South China Sea, Philippine Sea, Sulu Sea, Celebes Sea, and Luzon Strait

note 2: Philippines is one of the countries along the Ring of Fire, a belt of active volcanoes and earthquake epicenters bordering the Pacific Ocean; up to 90% of the world's earthquakes and some 75% of the world's volcanoes occur within the Ring of Fire

note 3: the Philippines sits astride the Pacific typhoon belt and an average of 9 typhoons make landfall on the islands each year - with about 5 of these being destructive; the country is the most exposed in the world to tropical storms