Azerbaijan Geography - 2024

Location

Southwestern Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Russia, with a small European portion north of the Caucasus range

Geographic coordinates

40 30 N, 47 30 E

Map references

Asia

Area

total: 86,600 sq km

land: 82,629 sq km

water: 3,971 sq km

note: includes the exclave of Naxcivan Autonomous Republic and the Nagorno-Karabakh region; the final status of the region has yet to be determined

Area - comparative

about three-quarters the size of Pennsylvania; slightly smaller than Maine

Area comparison map:

Land boundaries

total: 2,468 km

border countries (5): Armenia 996 km; Georgia 428 km; Iran 689 km; Russia 338 km; Turkey 17 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked); note - Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea (713 km)

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Climate

dry, semiarid steppe

Terrain

large, flat Kur-Araz Ovaligi (Kura-Araks Lowland, much of it below sea level) with Great Caucasus Mountains to the north, Qarabag Yaylasi (Karabakh Upland) to the west; Baku lies on Abseron Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) that juts into Caspian Sea

Elevation

highest point: Bazarduzu Dagi 4,466 m

lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m

mean elevation: 384 m

Natural resources

petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nonferrous metals, bauxite

Land use

agricultural land: 57.6% (2018 est.)

arable land: 22.8% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 2.7% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 32.1% (2018 est.)

forest: 11.3% (2018 est.)

other: 31.1% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

14,649 sq km (2020)

Major lakes (area sq km)

salt water lake(s): Caspian Sea (shared with Iran, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan) - 374,000 sq km

Population distribution

highest population density is found in the far eastern area of the country, in and around Baku; apart from smaller urbanized areas, the rest of the country has a fairly light and evenly distributed population

Natural hazards

droughts

Geography - note

both the main area of the country and the Naxcivan exclave are landlocked