| Location | Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras |
| Geographic coordinates | 13 00 N, 85 00 W |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean |
| Area | total: 130,370 sq km land: 119,990 sq km water: 10,380 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Pennsylvania; slightly smaller than New York state |
| Land boundaries | total: 1,253 km border countries (2): Costa Rica 313 km, Honduras 940 km |
| Coastline | 910 km |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: natural prolongation |
| Climate | tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands |
| Terrain | extensive Atlantic coastal plains rising to central interior mountains; narrow Pacific coastal plain interrupted by volcanoes |
| Elevation extremes | highest point: Mogoton 2,085 m lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m mean elevation: 298 m |
| Natural resources | gold, silver, copper, tungsten, lead, zinc, timber, fish |
| Land use | agricultural land: 42.2% (2018 est.) arable land: 12.5% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 2.5% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 27.2% (2018 est.) forest: 25.3% (2018 est.) other: 32.5% (2018 est.) |
| Irrigated land | 1,990 sq km (2012) |
| Total renewable water resources | 164.52 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) |
| Natural hazards | destructive earthquakes; volcanoes; landslides; extremely susceptible to hurricanes volcanism: significant volcanic activity; Cerro Negro (728 m), which last erupted in 1999, is one of Nicaragua's most active volcanoes; its lava flows and ash have been known to cause significant damage to farmland and buildings; other historically active volcanoes include Concepcion, Cosiguina, Las Pilas, Masaya, Momotombo, San Cristobal, and Telica |
| Geography - note | largest country in Central America; contains the largest freshwater body in Central America, Lago de Nicaragua |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
