Europe's largest countries - by population and area

What are Europe's largest countries? We list Europe's largest countries by population and by area. For the most part, it is perhaps as you would expect, but some countries are surprising. For example, where do you think Sweden will end up on the list?

Europe's largest countries by population

A few days ago we wrote a list of Europe's largest citieswhich made us curious to explore which are Europe's largest countries. We first list Europe's largest countries by population. We start at number 10 and count down to number 1.

We have included both Russia and Turkey because these countries are partly in Europe, and because they are included in several lists of Europe's most populated countries. Sweden does not make the top 10, but would rank 17th (if you count Kazakhstan to Europe, otherwise in 16th place).

10. Romania

In 10th place is Romania, with 19 million inhabitants (2017). The largest city in Romania is Bucharest, with around 2.1 million inhabitants.

9 - Poland

Poland is home to more than 38 million people (2017), making it one of the ten largest countries in Europe in terms of population. The largest city is Warsaw with 1.7 million inhabitants.

8. Ukraine

Ukraine is home to about 42 million people (2017), placing it in eighth place. The largest city is Kiev with just over 2.9 million inhabitants.

7. Spain

Spain is home to around 46 million people (2017), making it a large European country. The largest city is Madrid with 3.2 million inhabitants.

6. Italy

Italians number around 60 million (2016), which puts them in sixth place on this list. The largest city is Rome with over 2.8 million inhabitants.

5. Great Britain

The UK is home to around 65 million people (2016), making the English almost as numerous as the French. The largest city is London with 9.1 million inhabitants.

4. France

The French population is around 67 million (2018), making France one of the largest countries in Europe in terms of population. The largest city in France is Paris with just over 2.1 million inhabitants.

3. Turkey

Turkey has around 79 million inhabitants (2016) and therefore ranks third on the list. However, it should be noted that most of the country is actually in Asia. The largest city in Turkey is Istanbul with 15 million inhabitants.

2. Germany

Germany has around 82 million inhabitants (2017), making it an honourable second place. The largest city in Germany is Berlin with about 3.7 million inhabitants.

1. Russia

With around 146 million inhabitants (2017), Russia is by far the most populous country in Europe. On the other hand, not all these inhabitants live in Europe, as the country spans both Europe and Asia. The largest city in Russia is Moscow, with just over 13.1 million inhabitants.

Europe's largest countries by area

What are the largest countries in Europe in terms of surface area? Some countries are large in terms of area and population, but there are also some large but sparsely populated countries... like Sweden! We start with the tenth largest country in terms of surface area and count down to number 1. In this list, we have included the countries included in the Wikipedia list, which includes Russia but not Turkey (which has most of its surface area in Asia).

10. Italy

The boot-shaped country of Italy ranks 10th on the list of Europe's largest countries by area, with a surface area of 301,318 kilometres.².

9 - Poland

Poland is a large country, both in terms of population and area. The country has an area of 312 685 km² which puts it in ninth place.

8. Finland

Our neighbour Finland is sometimes referred to as the land of a thousand lakes and has an area of 338 145 km²which is good enough for eighth place on the list.

7. Germany

Germany is one of the most densely populated countries, but in terms of surface area, it only ranks 7th with 357,050 kilometres.².

6. Norway

In sixth place is our beautiful neighbour Norway, with fjords, mountains and a total area of 385 155 km.².

5. Sweden

In fifth place is ... Sweden! Our 'small' country is not so small in terms of surface area, with a total of 449 964 km.².

4. Spain

The fourth largest country in Europe is Spain, with 498,468 kilometres.². The Canary Islands are not included in this area.

3. France

The third largest country by surface area is France with 551 695 km². This area does not include France's overseas territories.

2. Ukraine

The second largest country in Europe in terms of surface area is Ukraine, with 603,700 kilometres.². However, the country has lost some territory since the Crimean peninsula became Russian.

1. Russia

Russia is the largest country in Europe by area, covering 3,960,000 kilometres.². In fact, most of the country is not in Europe, but in Asia.

Which of Europe's largest countries have you visited?

We (at least one of us) have visited every country on the list except Romania. Peter has only made a brief visit to Turkey during a stopover (they had a drink in a hotel!), so I guess that counts for something. Which of Europe's biggest countries have you visited? Did any of the countries on the list surprise you?