Belgium Geography - 2023

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Location

Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands

Geographic coordinates

50 50 N, 4 00 E

Map references

Europe

Area

total: 30,528 sq km

land: 30,278 sq km

water: 250 sq km

Area - comparative

about the size of Maryland

Land boundaries

total: 1,297 km

border countries (4): France 556 km; Germany 133 km; Luxembourg 130 km; Netherlands 478 km

Coastline

66.5 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: geographic coordinates define outer limit

continental shelf: median line with neighbors

Climate

temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy

Terrain

flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast

Elevation

highest point: Botrange 694 m

lowest point: North Sea 0 m

mean elevation: 181 m

Natural resources

construction materials, silica sand, carbonates, arable land

Land use

agricultural land: 44.1% (2018 est.)

arable land: 27.2% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 0.8% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 16.1% (2018 est.)

forest: 22.4% (2018 est.)

other: 33.5% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

57 sq km (2013)

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Atlantic Ocean drainage: Seine (78,919 sq km), Rhine-Maas (198,735 sq km)

Population distribution

most of the population concentrated in the northern two-thirds of the country; the southeast is more thinly populated; considered to have one of the highest population densities in the world; approximately 97% live in urban areas

Natural hazards

flooding is a threat along rivers and in areas of reclaimed coastal land, protected from the sea by concrete dikes

Geography - note

crossroads of Western Europe; most West European capitals are within 1,000 km of Brussels, the seat of both the EU and NATO

NOTE: The information regarding Belgium on this page is re-published from the 2023 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Belgium 2023 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Belgium 2023 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.