This is a list of countries by number of islands, with figures given for the numbers of islands within their territories. In some cases, this figure is approximate and may vary slightly between sources depending on which islands are counted. The criteria for inclusion appear to differ considerably between the countries, so they are not necessarily directly comparable. Different languages use different words for islands depending on size and or shape and elevation (the English language has islets, skerries, cays, eyots etc for smaller islands). This can influence which islands are counted or not. Some islands are fully submerged by the tides at times, and those may also not be counted by some countries while others do. Where counts vary, this article uses the highest reliably sourced figure.
![]() | This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (June 2017) |
Country | No. of islands |
No. of inhabited islands |
Notes | List link | Source(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Albania | 12 | 4 | List | [1] | |
Algeria | 240 | 32 islands and 208 islets; coastal islands/islets only. | List | [2] | |
Antigua and Barbuda | 54 | 2 | Three main islands (Antigua, Barbuda and Redonda) and 51 offshore islands | List | [3][4] |
Australia | 8222 | List | [5] | ||
Azerbaijan | 16 | 1 | List | [6] | |
Bangladesh | 23 | ||||
Barbados | 4 | 1 | There are currently two islands and two banks in Barbados. An additional historical island (Pelican Island) no longer exists. | List | [7] |
Canada | 52455 | List | [8] | ||
Cape Verde | 15 | 9 | 10 islands and 5 islets | List | [9] |
Chile | 5919 | 2,324 | 3,739 islands (above 9,000 m2 (97,000 sq ft)) and 2180 islets (above 3,000 m2 (32,000 sq ft)) | List | [10] |
China | 6961 | 433 | 500 m2 (5,400 sq ft) only. Excludes Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao. | List | [11] |
Croatia | 1246 | 48 | List | [12] | |
Denmark | 406 | 70 | List | [13] | |
Dominica | 3 | 1 | The island nation of Dominica with a total area of 750 km2 (290 sq mi) includes two small, off-shore islands and one disputed island: | List | [14][15] |
Estonia | 2222 | 22 | List | [16][17] | |
Finland | 178947 | 780 | List | [18] | |
Greece | 6000 | 227 | Depending on inclusion criteria counts vary from 1,200[19] to 6000.[20] The number inhabited is variously cited as between 166[21] and 227.[20] | List | [20] |
Hong Kong | 263 | >500 m2 (5,400 sq ft) only. "Many" or "most" are inhabited. | List | [22] | |
Iceland | 31 | 4 | 1 large and "about 30 smaller islands, and thousands of rocks and skerries." | List | [23] |
India | 1382 | 0 | "Off-shore identified islands". The Andaman and Nicobar Islands comprise 572 islands, 37 of which are inhabited.[24] Lakshadweep is 32 islands, 10 of which are inhabited.[25] | List | [26] |
Indonesia | 17508 | 6,000 | Largest archipelagic state. 5 major islands and about 30 smaller groups, about 6,000 are inhabited. | By name By area By population By extremities |
[27] |
Italy | 808 | List | |||
Japan | 6852 | 430 | By area By location |
[28][29] | |
Kiribati | 33 | 21 | 32 atolls and 1 limestone island; 21 islands are inhabited. | List | [30] |
Maldives | 1192 | 187 | 1,192 islands in total of 10 atolls; 187 islands are inhabited. | List | [31] |
Malta | 21 | 3 | 3 inhabited (Malta, Gozo and Comino), 3 islets and 12 "large rocks" | — | [32] |
Marshall Islands | 34 | 24 | 29 atolls and 5 isolated islands. | List | [33][34] |
Micronesia | 607 | 65 | Four major island groups | List | [35][36] |
Nauru | 1 | 1 | — | [37] | |
New Zealand | 600 | Approximate number within about 50 km (31 mi) of the two main islands; excludes associated states and Antarctic islands. | List | [38] | |
North Macedonia | 30 | 0 | 13 larger than 0.01 km2 (110,000 sq ft), 6 on lakes, the rest on rivers. | List | [39] |
Norway | 239057 | 2,000 | An older source gives 53,789 islands, which may be the figure for coastal islands only.[40] | By area By name |
[41][42] |
Pakistan | 16 | 7 | Pakistan's largest island, Astola | List | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astola_Island |
Palau | 200 | 8 | Eight permanently inhabited | List | [43] |
Peru | 233 | 8 | Approximate there are 94.36 km (58.63 mi) in maritime islands and islets, 39.04 km (24.26 mi) inside lakes, and an undeterminedf | List | [44] |
Philippines | 7641 | 2,000 | Thousands of islands are unnamed, and tiny. | List | [45][46] |
Russia | 1338 | List | [47] | ||
Samoa | 12 | 4 | List | [48] | |
Senegal | 35 | List | |||
South Korea | 3,358 | 2,876 | List | [49] | |
Spain | 60 | 21 | List | ||
Scotland | 900 | 118 | More than 900 islands, of which 118 are inhabited. | List | |
Sweden | 267570 | 984 | Slightly more than 8,000 islands had some form of buildings in 2013, most uninhabited. More than 1.6 million (17% of population) people lived on an island in 2013. This figure is high because there are densely populated islands in the larger cities of Sweden. | List | [50] |
Tonga | 169 | 36 | The total surface area of the archipelago is about 750 km2 (290 sq mi), scattered over 700,000 km2 (270,000 sq mi) of the southern Pacific Ocean. | List | [51] |
Tuvalu | 9 | 9 | Six atolls and 3 reef islands. | List | [52] |
United States | 18617 | List | [53] | ||
Venezuela | 650 | 350 | Most of them are virgin lands[clarification needed]and Margarita Island as the largest island of Venezuela. | List |
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