Countries of Asia

About Asia

Asia is the largest and most populous continent, covering about a third of Earth’s land area and home to well over half of humanity. It contains the world’s two most populous countries — India and China — as well as its highest mountains (the Himalayas, crowned by Mount Everest), its largest lake (the Caspian Sea) and some of its oldest continuous civilizations, from Mesopotamia to the Indus Valley and ancient China.

Stretching from the Mediterranean shores of the Middle East to the Pacific islands of Japan and Indonesia, Asia encompasses an immense range of cultures, religions and economies: global financial hubs like Singapore and Tokyo, energy giants of the Gulf, the vast steppes of Central Asia and the tropical archipelagos of Southeast Asia.

Asia in figures

• The largest country by area is China (9,597,000 km²) and the smallest is the Maldives (298 km²).
• India, China and Indonesia are the most populous, together home to 66% of the people in Asia; Brunei has the fewest inhabitants (469,775).
• The most densely populated country is Singapore, with about 8,112 people per km²; the most sparsely populated is Mongolia (2.3 per km²).
• By GDP per person in 2024, Singapore is the richest (US$94,897) and Afghanistan the poorest (US$417) — a gap of 228 to 1.
• Singapore has the highest Human Development Index (0.946) and Yemen the lowest (0.470).
• 10 countries are landlocked and 11 are island nations.

Regions of Asia

Countries.World groups the 46 countries of Asia into 5 regions, listed here by number of countries; within each region, countries are ordered by population.