United Kingdom
London · Northern Europe
United Kingdom is a country in Europe. Its capital city is London, the official currency is the Pound Sterling, and the main language is English.
With a population of roughly 67.7 million people spread over 242,495 km², United Kingdom is the 21st most populous country in the world and the 78th largest by area. That works out at about 279 people per square kilometre.
United Kingdom shares land borders with Ireland — its only land neighbour. Its largest urban centres are London, Birmingham and Manchester. The highest point in the country is Ben Nevis, at 1,345 metres.
For scale, it covers almost exactly the same area as Uganda, while its population is closest to that of Tanzania.
- Capital
- London
- Region
- Northern Europe
- Population
- 67,700,000
- Area
- 242,495 km²
- Currency
- Pound Sterling
- Main language
- English
- Highest point
- Ben Nevis
1,345 m - Land borders
- 1
United Kingdom: things worth knowing
- The United Kingdom is made up of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Its only land border is with Ireland, running across the island of Ireland.
- It has no single codified constitution, relying instead on statute, convention and case law.
United Kingdom in context
Europe has 44 sovereign countries in total. United Kingdom ranks 3rd among them by population.
See the full list of Europe countries, or browse all 195 countries.