Countries with the most neighbours
China and Russia share first place: each has a land border with 14 other countries. Counting neighbours sounds simple, but enclaves, overseas territories and partially recognised states all change the answer, so the counting rule comes first.
Research reviewed 8 October 2026 · Sources & methodology
China and Russia: 14 neighbours each
China borders Russia, Mongolia, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. Russia borders Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia and North Korea. Three countries — Kazakhstan, Mongolia and North Korea — appear on both lists, and China and Russia also border each other.
Russia’s total relies on Kaliningrad, an exclave on the Baltic Sea that is separated from the rest of the country. Without it, Lithuania and Poland would drop off the list. China’s count excludes Hong Kong and Macau, which are special administrative regions of China rather than separate countries.
France with 11, then Brazil with 10 complete the top group. Across all 196 profiles, a country has 3.2 counted land neighbours on average. Size helps, but it is not the whole explanation: Canada and Australia are among the largest countries, yet Canada has one neighbour and Australia none.
Every country ranked by its number of neighbours
The table lists the 156 countries with at least one counted land neighbour. Ties share a rank. The final column shows borders with places that are not among the 196 directory countries — Kosovo and Western Sahara — which are not included in the count.
156 countries. Scroll the table for all entries. Base rank follows the page’s main measure; sorting another column keeps that rank.
| Base rank | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  China | 14 | Russia, Mongolia, North Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan | — |
| 1 |  Russia | 14 | Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, North Korea | — |
| 3 |  France | 11 | Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco, Spain, Andorra, Brazil (French Guiana), Suriname (French Guiana), Netherlands (Saint Martin) | — |
| 4 |  Brazil | 10 | Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, France (French Guiana), Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina, Uruguay | — |
| 5 |  Democratic Republic of the Congo | 9 | Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, Angola | — |
| 5 |  Germany | 9 | Denmark, Poland, Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, Belgium, Netherlands | — |
| 7 |  Austria | 8 | Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein | — |
| 7 |  Tanzania | 8 | Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique | — |
| 7 |  Turkey | 8 | Greece, Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Syria | — |
| 7 |  Zambia | 8 | Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Angola | — |
| 11 |  Hungary | 7 | Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria | — |
| 11 |  Iran | 7 | Turkey, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia | — |
| 11 |  Mali | 7 | Algeria, Niger, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Senegal, Mauritania | — |
| 11 |  Niger | 7 | Algeria, Libya, Chad, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali | — |
| 11 |  Poland | 7 | Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Russia | — |
| 11 |  Saudi Arabia | 7 | Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen | — |
| 11 |  Serbia | 7 | Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia | Kosovo |
| 11 |  Sudan | 7 | Egypt, Libya, Chad, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea | — |
| 11 |  Ukraine | 7 | Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Moldova | — |
| 20 |  Afghanistan | 6 | Pakistan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, China | — |
| 20 |  Algeria | 6 | Tunisia, Libya, Niger, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco | Western Sahara |
| 20 |  Burkina Faso | 6 | Mali, Niger, Benin, Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast | — |
| 20 |  Cameroon | 6 | Nigeria, Chad, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea | — |
| 20 |  Central African Republic | 6 | Chad, Sudan, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cameroon | — |
| 20 |  Chad | 6 | Libya, Sudan, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger | — |
| 20 |  Ethiopia | 6 | Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, South Sudan, Sudan | — |
| 20 |  Guinea | 6 | Senegal, Mali, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau | — |
| 20 |  India | 6 | Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar | — |
| 20 |  Iraq | 6 | Turkey, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria | — |
| 20 |  Italy | 6 | France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Vatican City | — |
| 20 |  Libya | 6 | Tunisia, Algeria, Niger, Chad, Sudan, Egypt | — |
| 20 |  Mozambique | 6 | Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Eswatini | — |
| 20 |  South Africa | 6 | Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Eswatini, Lesotho | — |
| 20 |  South Sudan | 6 | Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic | — |
| 35 |  Argentina | 5 | Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, Uruguay | — |
| 35 |  Azerbaijan | 5 | Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Iran, Turkey | — |
| 35 |  Belarus | 5 | Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia | — |
| 35 |  Bolivia | 5 | Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, Peru | — |
| 35 |  Bulgaria | 5 | Romania, Serbia, North Macedonia, Greece, Turkey | — |
| 35 |  Colombia | 5 | Venezuela, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Panama | — |
| 35 |  Croatia | 5 | Slovenia, Hungary, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro | — |
| 35 |  Israel | 5 | Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Palestine | — |
| 35 |  Ivory Coast | 5 | Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana | — |
| 35 |  Jordan | 5 | Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Palestine | — |
| 35 |  Kazakhstan | 5 | Russia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan | — |
| 35 |  Kenya | 5 | Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan | — |
| 35 |  Laos | 5 | China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar | — |
| 35 |  Myanmar | 5 | India, Bangladesh, China, Laos, Thailand | — |
| 35 |  Peru | 5 | Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile | — |
| 35 |  Republic of the Congo | 5 | Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, Gabon | — |
| 35 |  Romania | 5 | Ukraine, Moldova, Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary | — |
| 35 |  Senegal | 5 | Mauritania, Mali, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia | — |
| 35 |  Slovakia | 5 | Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary | — |
| 35 |  Spain | 5 | Portugal, France, Andorra, Morocco, United Kingdom (Gibraltar) | — |
| 35 |  Switzerland | 5 | Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Italy, France | — |
| 35 |  Syria | 5 | Turkey, Iraq, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon | — |
| 35 |  Uganda | 5 | South Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo | — |
| 35 |  Uzbekistan | 5 | Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan | — |
| 59 |  Angola | 4 | Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Namibia | — |
| 59 |  Armenia | 4 | Georgia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkey | — |
| 59 |  Belgium | 4 | Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, France | — |
| 59 |  Benin | 4 | Togo, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria | — |
| 59 |  Botswana | 4 | South Africa, Namibia, Zambia, Zimbabwe | — |
| 59 |  Czech Republic | 4 | Germany, Poland, Slovakia, Austria | — |
| 59 |  Egypt | 4 | Libya, Sudan, Israel, Palestine (Gaza Strip) | — |
| 59 |  Georgia | 4 | Russia, Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan | — |
| 59 |  Greece | 4 | Albania, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, Turkey | — |
| 59 |  Guatemala | 4 | Mexico, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador | — |
| 59 |  Kyrgyzstan | 4 | Kazakhstan, China, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan | — |
| 59 |  Latvia | 4 | Estonia, Lithuania, Russia, Belarus | — |
| 59 |  Lithuania | 4 | Latvia, Belarus, Poland, Russia | — |
| 59 |  Mauritania | 4 | Algeria, Mali, Senegal, Morocco | Western Sahara |
| 59 |  Montenegro | 4 | Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Albania | Kosovo |
| 59 |  Namibia | 4 | Angola, Zambia, Botswana, South Africa | — |
| 59 |  Nigeria | 4 | Benin, Niger, Chad, Cameroon | — |
| 59 |  North Macedonia | 4 | Serbia, Albania, Greece, Bulgaria | Kosovo |
| 59 |  Pakistan | 4 | India, China, Afghanistan, Iran | — |
| 59 |  Rwanda | 4 | Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo | — |
| 59 |  Slovenia | 4 | Italy, Austria, Hungary, Croatia | — |
| 59 |  Tajikistan | 4 | Kyrgyzstan, China, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan | — |
| 59 |  Thailand | 4 | Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia | — |
| 59 |  Turkmenistan | 4 | Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Iran | — |
| 59 |  Zimbabwe | 4 | South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Mozambique | — |
| 84 |  Albania | 3 | Montenegro, North Macedonia, Greece | Kosovo |
| 84 |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | 3 | Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro | — |
| 84 |  Burundi | 3 | Rwanda, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of the Congo | — |
| 84 |  Cambodia | 3 | Thailand, Laos, Vietnam | — |
| 84 |  Chile | 3 | Peru, Bolivia, Argentina | — |
| 84 |  Djibouti | 3 | Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia | — |
| 84 |  Eritrea | 3 | Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti | — |
| 84 |  Finland | 3 | Sweden, Norway, Russia | — |
| 84 |  Gabon | 3 | Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea | — |
| 84 |  Ghana | 3 | Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Togo | — |
| 84 |  Guyana | 3 | Venezuela, Brazil, Suriname | — |
| 84 |  Honduras | 3 | Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua | — |
| 84 |  Indonesia | 3 | Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste | — |
| 84 |  Liberia | 3 | Sierra Leone, Guinea, Ivory Coast | — |
| 84 |  Luxembourg | 3 | Belgium, Germany, France | — |
| 84 |  Malawi | 3 | Tanzania, Mozambique, Zambia | — |
| 84 |  Malaysia | 3 | Thailand, Indonesia, Brunei | — |
| 84 |  Mexico | 3 | United States, Guatemala, Belize | — |
| 84 |  Morocco | 3 | Algeria, Mauritania, Spain | — |
| 84 |  Netherlands | 3 | Belgium, Germany, France (Saint Martin) | — |
| 84 |  North Korea | 3 | South Korea, China, Russia | — |
| 84 |  Norway | 3 | Sweden, Finland, Russia | — |
| 84 |  Oman | 3 | United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Yemen | — |
| 84 |  Palestine | 3 | Israel, Egypt, Jordan | — |
| 84 |  Paraguay | 3 | Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia | — |
| 84 |  Somalia | 3 | Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti | — |
| 84 |  Suriname | 3 | Guyana, Brazil, France (French Guiana) | — |
| 84 |  Togo | 3 | Ghana, Burkina Faso, Benin | — |
| 84 |  Venezuela | 3 | Colombia, Brazil, Guyana | — |
| 84 |  Vietnam | 3 | China, Laos, Cambodia | — |
| 114 |  Andorra | 2 | Spain, France | — |
| 114 |  Bangladesh | 2 | India, Myanmar | — |
| 114 |  Belize | 2 | Mexico, Guatemala | — |
| 114 |  Bhutan | 2 | China, India | — |
| 114 |  Costa Rica | 2 | Nicaragua, Panama | — |
| 114 |  Ecuador | 2 | Colombia, Peru | — |
| 114 |  El Salvador | 2 | Guatemala, Honduras | — |
| 114 |  Equatorial Guinea | 2 | Cameroon, Gabon | — |
| 114 |  Estonia | 2 | Russia, Latvia | — |
| 114 |  Eswatini | 2 | South Africa, Mozambique | — |
| 114 |  Guinea-Bissau | 2 | Senegal, Guinea | — |
| 114 |  Kuwait | 2 | Iraq, Saudi Arabia | — |
| 114 |  Lebanon | 2 | Syria, Israel | — |
| 114 |  Liechtenstein | 2 | Switzerland, Austria | — |
| 114 |  Moldova | 2 | Romania, Ukraine | — |
| 114 |  Mongolia | 2 | Russia, China | — |
| 114 |  Nepal | 2 | China, India | — |
| 114 |  Nicaragua | 2 | Honduras, Costa Rica | — |
| 114 |  Panama | 2 | Costa Rica, Colombia | — |
| 114 |  Sierra Leone | 2 | Guinea, Liberia | — |
| 114 |  Sweden | 2 | Norway, Finland | — |
| 114 |  Tunisia | 2 | Algeria, Libya | — |
| 114 |  United Arab Emirates | 2 | Saudi Arabia, Oman | — |
| 114 |  United Kingdom | 2 | Ireland, Spain (Gibraltar) | — |
| 114 |  United States | 2 | Canada, Mexico | — |
| 114 |  Uruguay | 2 | Brazil, Argentina | — |
| 114 |  Yemen | 2 | Saudi Arabia, Oman | — |
| 141 |  Brunei | 1 | Malaysia | — |
| 141 |  Canada | 1 | United States | — |
| 141 |  Denmark | 1 | Germany | — |
| 141 |  Dominican Republic | 1 | Haiti | — |
| 141 |  Gambia | 1 | Senegal | — |
| 141 |  Haiti | 1 | Dominican Republic | — |
| 141 |  Ireland | 1 | United Kingdom | — |
| 141 |  Lesotho | 1 | South Africa | — |
| 141 |  Monaco | 1 | France | — |
| 141 |  Papua New Guinea | 1 | Indonesia | — |
| 141 |  Portugal | 1 | Spain | — |
| 141 |  Qatar | 1 | Saudi Arabia | — |
| 141 |  San Marino | 1 | Italy | — |
| 141 |  South Korea | 1 | North Korea | — |
| 141 |  Timor-Leste | 1 | Indonesia | — |
| 141 |  Vatican City | 1 | Italy | — |
No countries match these filters. Try another name or reset the filters.
Borders created by overseas territories
Some land borders are thousands of kilometres from the country’s capital. This guide counts them, because the territory is part of the country, or under its sovereignty, rather than a separate state.
- France has 8 neighbours in Europe but 11 in total. French Guiana, an overseas region in South America, borders Brazil and Suriname along more than 1,000 km of rivers and forest. On the Caribbean island of Saint Martin, France shares a border with the Netherlands.
- Spain and the United Kingdom share a short border at Gibraltar, a British overseas territory. Spain’s own cities of Ceuta and Melilla on the North African coast give it a border with Morocco.
One case is not yet counted. In 2022, Canada and Denmark agreed to divide the uninhabited Hans Island between Canada and Greenland, which would give the two countries a short land boundary. Some lists already include it; the profiles here do not.
Lists that consider only a country’s main territory produce lower totals for these countries. Neither convention is wrong, but comparing totals from sources that use different rules is.
Countries with one neighbour — or none
40 countries have no land border with another directory country. 39 of them are island countries. The exception is Australia, which is classified as a continent-sized country rather than an island country but shares no land with another state.
16 countries have exactly one neighbour: Brunei (Malaysia), Canada (United States), Denmark (Germany), Dominican Republic (Haiti), Gambia (Senegal), Haiti (Dominican Republic), Ireland (United Kingdom), Lesotho (South Africa), Monaco (France), Papua New Guinea (Indonesia), Portugal (Spain), Qatar (Saudi Arabia), San Marino (Italy), South Korea (North Korea), Timor-Leste (Indonesia) and Vatican City (Italy). Three of them are entirely surrounded by that neighbour: Lesotho by South Africa, San Marino by Italy and Vatican City by Italy. Several more share an island with their only neighbour: Haiti and the Dominican Republic on Hispaniola, Ireland with the United Kingdom, Brunei with Malaysia on Borneo, and Timor-Leste and Papua New Guinea with Indonesia on Timor and New Guinea.
Neighbours by continent
Continents with many countries packed into large landmasses produce the highest counts. Oceania, made up almost entirely of island states, has the lowest average.
| Region | Most neighbours | Average per country |
|---|---|---|
| Africa | Democratic Republic of the Congo (9) | 4.0 |
| Americas | Brazil (10) | 2.1 |
| Asia | China (14) | 3.3 |
| Europe | Russia (14) | 4.1 |
| Oceania | Papua New Guinea (1) | 0.1 |
Where a region has a tie for first place, the alphabetically first country is shown; the full ranking above lists every tie. The Americas combine North and South America, so Brazil’s total sits beside island states in the Caribbean.
Sources & methodology
A neighbour is counted when two of the 196 directory countries share a land border, including borders formed by overseas territories, exclaves and shared islands. Maritime boundaries, bridges and tunnels are not borders for this purpose. Kosovo and Western Sahara are shown on profiles but not counted, because they are not separate profiles in this directory. Using a different set of countries gives different totals — Serbia, for example, has one more neighbour if Kosovo is counted.
- Countries.World country profiles
Each profile lists its land neighbours. This guide counts the neighbours that are also among the 196 directory countries.
- CIA World Factbook: land boundaries
Reference for border countries and boundary lengths, including borders formed by overseas territories.
- NBC News: Danish-Canadian deal ends feud over Arctic isle (June 2022)
Report of the agreement to divide Hans Island; the boundary is not counted in this guide.
Country lists follow our 196-profile directory convention: 193 UN members, Vatican City, Palestine and Taiwan. Dependent territories are identified separately. A missing observation never means zero.