Sweden Geography - 2022

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Location

Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, Kattegat, and Skagerrak, between Finland and Norway

Geographic coordinates

62 00 N, 15 00 E

Map references

Europe

Area

total: 450,295 sq km

land: 410,335 sq km

water: 39,960 sq km

Area - comparative

almost three times the size of Georgia; slightly larger than California

Area comparison map

Land boundaries

total: 2,211 km

border countries (2): Finland 545 km; Norway 1,666 km

Coastline

3,218 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm (adjustments made to return a portion of straits to high seas)

exclusive economic zone: agreed boundaries or midlines

continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate

temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north

Terrain

mostly flat or gently rolling lowlands; mountains in west

Elevation

highest point: Kebnekaise South 2,100 m

lowest point: reclaimed bay of Lake Hammarsjon, near Kristianstad -2.4 m

mean elevation: 320 m

Natural resources

iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, tungsten, uranium, arsenic, feldspar, timber, hydropower

Land use

agricultural land: 7.5% (2018 est.)

arable land: 6.4% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 1.1% (2018 est.)

forest: 68.7% (2018 est.)

other: 23.8% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

519 sq km (2013)

Major lakes (area sq km)

fresh water lake(s): Vanern - 5,580 sq km; Vattern - 1,910 sq km; Malaren - 1,140 sq km

Population distribution

most Swedes live in the south where the climate is milder and there is better connectivity to mainland Europe; population clusters are found all along the Baltic coast in the east; the interior areas of the north remain sparsely populated

Natural hazards

ice floes in the surrounding waters, especially in the Gulf of Bothnia, can interfere with maritime traffic

Geography - note

strategic location along Danish Straits linking Baltic and North Seas; Sweden has almost 100,000 lakes, the largest of which, Vanern, is the third largest in Europe

NOTE: The information regarding Sweden on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Sweden 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Sweden 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.