geography
The United Kingdom is made up of over 6,000 islands, though most people only ever set foot on Great Britain, the largest one.
United Kingdom
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Population, GDP, and key facts about United Kingdom — updated for 2026.
Capital · LONDONContinent · EUROPEISO · GBR
United Kingdom quick facts
- Population
- 69,281,000
- Area
- 243,610 km²
- Population density
- 283 people/km²
- GDP
- US$ 3.7 Trillion
- GDP per capita
- US$ 53.3K
- Capital
- London
- Currency
- British pound (£, GBP)
- Minimum wage
- US$ 2.5K/month · £ 1,981/month (2024)
- Language
- English
United Kingdom at human scale
Where does United Kingdom rank in the world?
Compare United Kingdom with other countries
🇬🇧 vs 🇸🇪Compare United Kingdom vs Sweden6.6× difference in population🇬🇧 vs 🇮🇪Compare United Kingdom vs Ireland13× difference in population🇬🇧 vs 🇹🇿Compare United Kingdom vs Tanzania
Compare United Kingdom with any country →United Kingdom's war history
- Government of Australia, Government of United Kingdom, Government of United States of AmericavsGovernment of Iraq
- Government of AfghanistanvsGovernment of United Kingdom, Government of United States of America
- Government of EgyptvsGovernment of France, Government of Israel, Government of United Kingdom
- Government of United KingdomvsMau Mau
- Government of United KingdomvsCPM
InterstateExtrastate
Wars that reached at least 1,000 battle-related deaths in a year, since 1946 — not a full record of every armed conflict United Kingdom has had. Source: UCDP/PRIO Armed Conflict Dataset.
See every war since 1946 on the War Timeline →United Kingdom's energy mix
Fossil fuels · 36%Nuclear · 12%Renewables · 52%
- Natural gas31%
- Wind29%
- Bioenergy14%
- Nuclear12%
- Solar7%
- Oil4%
- Hydropower2%
- Coal0%
Share of United Kingdom's own electricity generation by source, 2025. Source: Our World in Data (Ember Yearly Electricity Data and the Energy Institute Statistical Review of World Energy).
Everything we know about United Kingdom
Countries near United Kingdom
How many countries do you think United Kingdom could fit?
Pour other countries into United Kingdom's own outline, by real area, and see how many it takes to fill it up.
Fill the Country →Frequently asked questions about United Kingdom
What is the capital of United Kingdom?
The capital of United Kingdom is London.
What is United Kingdom's population?
United Kingdom has a population of 69,281,000.
What is United Kingdom's GDP per capita?
United Kingdom's GDP per capita is US$ 53.3K.
What is the currency of United Kingdom?
The currency of United Kingdom is the British pound (GBP).
What is the minimum wage in United Kingdom?
United Kingdom's statutory minimum wage is about US$ 2.5K per month (as of 2024) — £ 1,981 per month in local currency.
Is United Kingdom bigger than Sweden?
Sweden is about 2.2× the size of United Kingdom by land area.
Think you can guess United Kingdom from its silhouette?
United Kingdom is one of the countries in our daily silhouette-guessing game.
Play Guess the Country →Data from the World Bank, updated November 2026.