Location:
Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, Kattegat, and Skagerrak, between Finland and Norway

Geographic coordinates:
62 00 N, 15 00 E

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 450,295 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
land: 410,335 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 39,960 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 57

Area - comparative:
almost three times the size of Georgia; slightly larger than California

Land boundaries:
total: 2,211 km
[see also: Land boundaries - total country ranks ]
border countries (2): Finland 545 km, Norway 1,666 km

Coastline:
3,218 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm (adjustments made to return a portion of straits to high seas)
[see also: Maritime claims - territorial sea country ranks ]
exclusive economic zone: agreed boundaries or midlines
[see also: Maritime claims - exclusive economic zone country ranks ]
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
[see also: Maritime claims - continental shelf country ranks ]

Climate:
temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north
More Climate Details

Terrain:
mostly flat or gently rolling lowlands; mountains in west

Elevation:
mean elevation: 320 m
[see also: Elevation - mean elevation country ranks ]
elevation extremes: lowest point: reclaimed bay of Lake Hammarsjon, near Kristianstad -2.4 m highest point: Kebnekaise 2,111 m

Natural resources:
iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, tungsten, uranium, arsenic, feldspar, timber, hydropower

Land use:
agricultural land: 7.5% arable land 6.4%; permanent crops 0%; permanent pasture 1.1%
[see also: Land use - agricultural land country ranks ]
forest: 68.7%
[see also: Land use - forest country ranks ]
other: 23.8% (2011 est.)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
1,640 sq km (2012)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Population - distribution:
most Swedes live in the south where the climate is milder and there is better connectivity to mainland Europe; population clusters are found all along the Baltic coast in the east; the interior areas of the north remain sparsely populated

Natural hazards:
ice floes in the surrounding waters, especially in the Gulf of Bothnia, can interfere with maritime traffic

Environment - current issues:
acid rain damage to soils and lakes; pollution of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
strategic location along Danish Straits linking Baltic and North Seas; Sweden has almost 100,000 lakes, the largest of which, Vanern, is the third largest in Europe