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Canada

North America

Position of Canada on a world map

At a glance

CapitalOttawa
Most common first languageEnglish54.9% speak it as a mother tongue
Official languagesEnglish, French
CurrencyCanadian dollar
Drives on theright
Highest pointMount Logan5,959 m
Biggest category of goods exportedmanufactured goods42% of goods exports, 2024
Services share of exports23.7%of everything sold abroad, 2025
Internet domain.ca

Facts about Canada

Canada shares the longest land border in the world with a single neighbour.

Source: ~8,900 km with the United States · checked 2026-08-08

Canada has the world's longest coastline — about 243,000 km — yet earns under 2% of its GDP from the sea.

Source: dfo-mpo.gc.ca · checked 2026-08-08

Canada mines the most potash.

Source: pubs.usgs.gov · checked 2026-08-08

Canada exports the most canola/rapeseed seed.

Source: tridge.com · checked 2026-08-08

Canada by the numbers

Rank is out of the countries with data for that measure. Every figure is the latest year the source publishes.

MeasureValueRank
PopulationEveryone living in the country, all ages, counted mid-year.41.7m (2025)38th
of 209
GDPThe total value of everything the country produces in a year, at current prices.$2.32tn (2025)10th
of 203
Land areaTotal land area, excluding inland water and offshore territory.8.79m km² (2023)4th
of 209
Military spending, totalWhat the government spends on its armed forces in a year — pay, equipment and operations.$29.3bn (2024)16th
of 151
Exports of goods & servicesThe value of everything the country sells abroad in a year, goods and services combined.$727bn (2025)15th
of 180
Mobile subscriptionsActive mobile phone subscriptions — NOT the same as people. Many people hold two, so a country can have more subscriptions than residents.37.4m (2024)44th
of 205
Forest areaLand under natural or planted trees, whether or not it is productive.3.47m km² (2023)3rd
of 203
Agricultural landCropland, land under permanent crops, and permanent pasture.569k km² (2023)15th
of 206
COâ‚‚ emissionsCarbon dioxide released in a year, in millions of tonnes.578 Mt (2024)11th
of 198
Urban populationThe number of people living in urban areas, as each country defines them.34.5m (2025)29th
of 209
Life expectancyHow long a baby born today would live if death rates never changed.82.1 years (2024)34th
of 209
GDP per personEverything the country produces in a year, divided by its population.$55,698 (2025)29th
of 205
Internet useThe share of people who have used the internet in the last three months.94.4% (2024)32nd
of 191
InflationHow much prices rose over the year, measured on a basket of consumer goods.2.1% (2025)124th
of 182
UnemploymentThe share of people who want a job and are looking for one but do not have one.6.9% (2025)62nd
of 185
Urban shareThe share of the population living in urban areas.82.9% (2025)46th
of 209
Births per womanHow many children a woman would have across her life at current birth rates.1.25 (2024)185th
of 209
Military spending, share of GDPWhat the country spends on its armed forces, as a share of everything it produces.1.31% of GDP (2024)95th
of 155
Trade opennessImports plus exports as a share of GDP. Above 100% is normal for small trading economies.63.5% of GDP (2025)120th
of 183
COâ‚‚ per personCarbon dioxide from fuel and industry, divided by the population.13.88 t (2024)14th
of 198
Human Development IndexThe UN’s combined measure of health, education and income, on a scale from 0 to 1.0.939 (2023)16th
of 193

Land borders

🇺🇸 United States

Canada shares these with other countries

Drives on the right 149Has a coast and land neighbours 115Has english as its most common first language 13Has english as an official language 63Has french as an official language 28Is a constitutional monarchy 40Is a member of the commonwealth 55Is a member of nato 30Is a member of the g20 19Is a member of the g7 7Mainly exports manufactured goods 83Is in north america 5

Canada in the Daily Ceteris

Questions from the daily puzzle where the answer is Canada.

Which country has the world's longest coastline — about 243,000 km — yet earns under 2% of its GDP from the sea?

Canada's marine sectors are worth $50.8 billion, or 1.8% of GDP, and most of that is tourism and shipping rather than fish. Coastline length turns out to be a poor proxy for maritime wealth: the great majority of Canada's is Arctic, ice-bound for much of the year and nowhere near a market. source

Which country mines the most potash?

Canada mines around a third of the world's potash, a fertiliser input with few substitutes. Its Saskatchewan producers historically coordinated exports through the Canpotex cartel, and sanctions on Belarus and Russia since 2022 have only tightened Canada's grip on supply. source

Among OECD countries, which has the highest share of 25-to-64-year-olds holding a tertiary qualification?

Nearly 65% of working-age Canadians hold a tertiary qualification, over 7 points clear of second-place Ireland — partly because Canada's large community-college sector counts towards the same statistic as a university degree. source

Which country exports the most canola/rapeseed seed?

A handful of prairie provinces in one country export more canola seed than anywhere else, feeding crushing plants worldwide for cooking oil and biodiesel — a concentration that leaves the crop exposed to single-buyer trade disputes. source

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Country data from the World Bank (CC BY 4.0) and the UNDP Human Development Report (CC BY 3.0 IGO)
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