Countries containing the largest deserts
Total desert area within each country's borders. The Sahara alone spans 11 countries, but Algeria holds the largest share.
Headline finding
Algeria leads the world for countries containing the largest deserts at 2,000,000 km² of desert.
The full top 15: Countries containing the largest deserts
Click any country to read its full profile.
What the numbers show
Algeria's lead at the top of this ranking is 14.3% above the second-place country — a margin tight enough that the top spot has changed hands within the last five years and could change again.
The five countries leading the table — Algeria, Libya, Australia, China, Mongolia — together set the global benchmark. The next 10 countries fill the rest of the table, with United States anchoring the list at 500,000.
Figures are drawn from UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre. We use this source because it produces a single, internally consistent dataset rather than aggregating from national statistics offices, which makes year-on-year comparison reliable. The next update is expected when the source publishes its next annual release — see the methodology section below for which year of data is currently shown.
Methodology and caveats
- What this measures
- km² of desert
- Source
- UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre
- Coverage
- Top 15 countries shown. Full source dataset covers all 195 sovereign states where data is available.
- Refresh cadence
- Updated annually as the source publishes new figures, typically autumn or spring.
- Known caveat
- Country definitions follow the source: where the UN, the World Bank and the CIA Factbook disagree on borders or recognition, we use the figure as published rather than reconciling between bodies. Comparisons across rankings should be made with this in mind.
Frequently asked
Which country tops the ranking for countries containing the largest deserts?
Algeria leads with 2,000,000 km² of desert. Libya is second at 1,750,000, with Australia in third place. Full top-10 with sources is above.
What's the source for the countries containing the largest deserts ranking?
The figures come from UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre. We use this source because it publishes a complete country-by-country dataset using consistent methodology — the alternative of mixing national statistics offices would compromise comparability. Updated annually with the latest available vintage of the data.
How often are the countries containing the largest deserts figures updated?
Once a year, in line with the source institution's publishing schedule. Major institutions like the World Bank, IMF and UNESCO publish annual updates in different months — typically autumn or spring — and the figures here reflect the most recently published vintage. The source footer on the ranking table shows which year's data is currently displayed.