Afghanistan is a country in Asia, with about 43.8 million people (2025) and an area of 652,870 square kilometres. Its capital is Kabul, and it shares land borders with 6 countries.
By Team Geography·Last reviewed
Flag of AfghanistanAfghanistan in solid, land neighbours outlined, capital marked.
The app teaches each country through short hand written lenses: PLACE for physical geography, STORY for history and identity, NOW for the news, and THREAD for the ties between countries. Here is one of Afghanistan's 5, in full.
PLACELens 1 of 5
A landlocked crossroads shaped by mountains
Afghanistan sits at the junction of South Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East, landlocked among six neighbors. The Hindu Kush range bisects the country from northeast to southwest, creating a natural barrier between the northern plains and the southern deserts. The Wakhan Corridor, a narrow finger of territory extending to the Chinese border, is a geographic relic of 19th-century British-Russian rivalry, designed to prevent the two empires from sharing a border.
More on Hindu Kush
The Hindu Kush stretches roughly 800 kilometers through Afghanistan and Pakistan, with peaks exceeding 7,000 meters. The range has historically divided the country into distinct spheres: Pashtun-dominated south and east, and Tajik, Uzbek, and Hazara communities in the north and center.
4 more lenses on Afghanistan in the app
STORY Afghanistan is less one nation than many overlapping ones
NOW The Taliban returned, and the humanitarian crisis deepened
THREAD Afghanistan is where South Asian, Central Asian, and Middle Eastern interests collide
PLACE The poppy economy and the mineral promise beneath
Titles only. The app brings each lens back on a spaced repetition schedule set by how well you knew it: New, Hazy or Clear.
Compare Afghanistan with another country
Opens the country comparison tool with population, area, income and more side by side, every figure dated.
Common questions
What is the capital of Afghanistan?
The capital of Afghanistan is Kabul. Kabul lies at about 34.5 degrees north and 69.2 degrees east. Afghanistan is in Asia. It is home to about 43.8 million people. The world capitals quiz on this site tests every capital, and the printable capitals sheets cover each continent.
What is the population of Afghanistan?
About 43.8 million people live in Afghanistan, according to the World Bank figures for 2025. That makes it the 36th most populous of the 195 countries. With an area of 652,870 square kilometres, that is about 67 people per square kilometre.
What countries border Afghanistan?
Afghanistan shares land borders with 6 countries: China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The map on this page outlines each of them around Afghanistan. The count includes only borders on land, not neighbours across a sea or a lake.
How big is Afghanistan?
Afghanistan covers 652,870 square kilometres, or about 252,074 square miles. That makes it the 40th largest of the 195 countries. The figure is total surface area, which includes inland water such as lakes and rivers. Its population of about 43.8 million gives a density of 67 people per square kilometre.
Afghanistan is a country in Asia, with about 43.8 million people (2025) and an area of 652,870 square kilometres. Its capital is Kabul, and it shares land borders with 6 countries.
Capital
Kabul
Continent
Asia
Population
43,844,111 2025, World Bank. 36th of 195.
Area
652,870 km² (252,074 sq mi) World Bank, surface area. 40th largest of 195.
Afghanistan sits at the junction of South Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East, landlocked among six neighbors. The Hindu Kush range bisects the country from northeast to southwest, creating a natural barrier between the northern plains and the southern deserts. The Wakhan Corridor, a narrow finger of territory extending to the Chinese border, is a geographic relic of 19th-century British-Russian rivalry, designed to prevent the two empires from sharing a border.
Keep going on your iPhone. Scan for Geography: the world, one country at a time, about five minutes a day. No quizzes and no streaks. playgeography.app/countries/afghanistan/ · Map data: Natural Earth. Figures: World Bank and national sources, as listed on the page.
Geography · Country report
Afghanistan
NameDate
Draw the flag
Colour Afghanistan on the map, then fill in what you find.
Capital
Continent
Population
Area
Languages
Currency
Neighbours
Landmarks
Rivers or mountains
Three things I learned
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3
One question I still have
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Keep going on your iPhone. Scan for Geography: the world, one country at a time, about five minutes a day. No quizzes and no streaks. playgeography.app/countries/afghanistan/ · Map data: Natural Earth. Figures: World Bank and national sources, as listed on the page.
