North Macedonia Geography - 2024

Location

Southeastern Europe, north of Greece

Geographic coordinates

41 50 N, 22 00 E

Map references

Europe

Area

total: 25,713 sq km

land: 25,433 sq km

water: 280 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than Vermont; almost four times the size of Delaware

Area comparison map:

Land boundaries

total: 838 km

border countries (5): Albania 181 km; Bulgaria 162 km; Greece 234 km; Kosovo 160 km; Serbia 101 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Climate

warm, dry summers and autumns; relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall

Terrain

mountainous with deep basins and valleys; three large lakes, each divided by a frontier line; country bisected by the Vardar River

Elevation

highest point: Golem Korab (Maja e Korabit) 2,764 m

lowest point: Vardar River 50 m

mean elevation: 741 m

Natural resources

low-grade iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, manganese, nickel, tungsten, gold, silver, asbestos, gypsum, timber, arable land

Land use

agricultural land: 44.3% (2018 est.)

arable land: 16.4% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 1.4% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 26.5% (2018 est.)

forest: 39.8% (2018 est.)

other: 15.9% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

844 sq km (2016)

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Atlantic Ocean drainage: (Black Sea) Danube (795,656 sq km)

Population distribution

a fairly even distribution throughout most of the country, with urban areas attracting larger and denser populations

Natural hazards

high seismic risks

Geography - note

landlocked; major transportation corridor from Western and Central Europe to Aegean Sea and Southern Europe to Western Europe