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Top 10 Largest Peninsulas in the World by Area

The ten largest landmasses that are almost islands, from the Arabian Peninsula at 3.2 million km² to the volcanic Kamchatka Peninsula.

Updated August 5, 2026 10 ranked 4 sources

Quick answer: 1. Arabian Peninsula, 2. Indian (Deccan) Peninsula, 3. Indochinese Peninsula, 4. Horn of Africa, 5. Labrador Peninsula, 6. Anatolia (Asia Minor), 7. Scandinavian Peninsula, 8. Balkan Peninsula, 9. Iberian Peninsula, 10. Kamchatka Peninsula.

A peninsula is a piece of land almost entirely surrounded by water but still connected to a larger landmass. The largest ones are so enormous that calling them 'peninsulas' almost undersells them — the Arabian Peninsula alone is larger than Greenland, the world's biggest island. This list ranks the ten largest peninsulas on Earth by total area in square kilometres. Where a peninsula's boundary meets the mainland is genuinely debatable (different geographers draw different lines), so the numbers below are best approximations. The top five are giants by any measure; the rest depend on where you set down your ruler.

Area (sq mi)

Area (sq mi)
Arabian Peninsula
1250000 sq mi
Indian (Deccan) Peninsula
800000 sq mi
Indochinese Peninsula
748000 sq mi
Horn of Africa
727000 sq mi
Labrador Peninsula
540000 sq mi
Anatolia (Asia Minor)
292000 sq mi
Scandinavian Peninsula
290000 sq mi
Balkan Peninsula
257000 sq mi
Iberian Peninsula
225000 sq mi
Kamchatka Peninsula
104000 sq mi

The ranking

1

Arabian Peninsula

The Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula on Earth at roughly 1,250,000 square miles (3.24 million km²). It hangs off southwest Asia, bordered by the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, and the Persian Gulf, and is shared by seven countries including Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, and the UAE. Most of its interior is covered by the Rub al Khali, one of the largest continuous sand seas in the world.

Area (km²): ~3,240,000Location: Southwest AsiaCountries: 7 (Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain)Key feature: Rub al Khali (Empty Quarter) desert
2

Indian (Deccan) Peninsula

The great southern projection of India, roughly 800,000 square miles (2.07 million km²), with the triangular Deccan Plateau as its core. Walled off to the north by the Himalayas, it drops into the Indian Ocean between the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. The Western and Eastern Ghats run down its two coasts, and the peninsula supports well over a billion people — the most of any entry on this list.

Area (km²): ~2,070,000Location: South AsiaCountries: 1 (India)Key feature: Deccan Plateau
3

Indochinese Peninsula

About 748,000 square miles (1.94 million km²) of mainland Southeast Asia, the Indochinese Peninsula carries Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, with the long Malay Peninsula trailing south off its bottom edge. The Mekong River runs through the middle of the region, and the area is one of the most biodiverse on the planet, home to well over a thousand bird species.

Area (km²): ~1,940,000Location: Southeast AsiaCountries: 5 (Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam)Key feature: Mekong River basin
4

Horn of Africa

The easternmost jut of Africa, around 727,000 square miles (1.88 million km²), the Horn pokes into the Indian Ocean at the mouth of the Red Sea. It covers Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia, and holds the Ethiopian Highlands — often called the Roof of Africa. It has produced some of the oldest known human ancestor fossils and hosts more endemic reptile species than any comparable region.

Area (km²): ~1,880,000Location: East AfricaCountries: 4 (Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia)Key feature: Ethiopian Highlands
5

Labrador Peninsula

The Labrador Peninsula covers roughly 540,000 square miles (1.4 million km²) of eastern Canada, split between Quebec and the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is bordered by Hudson Bay, the Hudson Strait, and the Labrador Sea, and sits on the ancient Canadian Shield — some of the oldest exposed rock on the planet. It is enormous, largely empty, and one of the coldest inhabited regions on Earth.

Area (km²): ~1,400,000Location: Eastern CanadaCountries: 1 (Canada — Quebec & Newfoundland and Labrador)Key feature: Canadian Shield bedrock
6

Anatolia (Asia Minor)

Anatolia forms the bulk of modern Turkey, about 292,000 square miles (756,000 km²), bounded by the Black Sea to the north, the Aegean to the west, and the Mediterranean to the south. It is the literal land bridge between Europe and Asia and one of the most fought-over pieces of ground in human history, hosting civilizations from the Hittites to the Ottomans.

Area (km²): ~756,000Location: Western AsiaCountries: 1 (Turkey)Key feature: Land bridge between Europe and Asia
7

Scandinavian Peninsula

Neck-and-neck with Anatolia at about 290,000 square miles (750,000 km²), the Scandinavian Peninsula is the largest in Europe and holds Norway and Sweden, plus a sliver of Finland. Its western coast has the most elaborate fjord system on Earth, carved by glaciers over millions of years. The Scandinavian Mountains run down the spine of the peninsula like a seam.

Area (km²): ~750,000Location: Northern EuropeCountries: 3 (Norway, Sweden, Finland)Key feature: Fjord coastline and Scandinavian Mountains
8

Balkan Peninsula

At roughly 257,000 square miles (666,000 km²) in southeastern Europe, bordered by the Adriatic, Aegean, and Black seas, the Balkans is the most geographically contested entry. A growing number of geographers argue it is not a true peninsula, because its northern land boundary is too wide and too vague. It appears here by tradition more than by geometry.

Area (km²): ~666,000Location: Southeastern EuropeCountries: 12+ (Greece, Albania, Bulgaria, Serbia, etc.)Key feature: Defined by convention, not precise geography
9

Iberian Peninsula

About 225,000 square miles (583,000 km²) in southwestern Europe, the Iberian Peninsula is mostly Spain and Portugal, with Andorra and Gibraltar squeezed in. The Pyrenees wall it off from the rest of the continent to the northeast, and at its southern tip the Strait of Gibraltar brings it within 14 km of Africa — close enough that on a clear day the two continents can see each other.

Area (km²): ~583,000Location: Southwestern EuropeCountries: 4 (Spain, Portugal, Andorra, Gibraltar)Key feature: Pyrenees mountain border
10

Kamchatka Peninsula

Kamchatka hangs off the far east of Russia at around 104,000 square miles (269,000 km²), separating the Sea of Okhotsk from the Pacific. It is one of the most volcanically active places on the planet, with 29 active volcanoes. Across much of the peninsula, brown bears comfortably outnumber the human population.

Area (km²): ~269,000Location: Russian Far EastCountries: 1 (Russia)Key feature: 29 active volcanoes

Full comparison

# Name Area (km²)LocationCountriesKey feature
1 Arabian Peninsula ~3,240,000Southwest Asia7 (Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain)Rub al Khali (Empty Quarter) desert
2 Indian (Deccan) Peninsula ~2,070,000South Asia1 (India)Deccan Plateau
3 Indochinese Peninsula ~1,940,000Southeast Asia5 (Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam)Mekong River basin
4 Horn of Africa ~1,880,000East Africa4 (Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia)Ethiopian Highlands
5 Labrador Peninsula ~1,400,000Eastern Canada1 (Canada — Quebec & Newfoundland and Labrador)Canadian Shield bedrock
6 Anatolia (Asia Minor) ~756,000Western Asia1 (Turkey)Land bridge between Europe and Asia
7 Scandinavian Peninsula ~750,000Northern Europe3 (Norway, Sweden, Finland)Fjord coastline and Scandinavian Mountains
8 Balkan Peninsula ~666,000Southeastern Europe12+ (Greece, Albania, Bulgaria, Serbia, etc.)Defined by convention, not precise geography
9 Iberian Peninsula ~583,000Southwestern Europe4 (Spain, Portugal, Andorra, Gibraltar)Pyrenees mountain border
10 Kamchatka Peninsula ~269,000Russian Far East1 (Russia)29 active volcanoes

How we ranked this

Peninsulas are ranked by total area in square kilometres using the best available estimates from WorldAtlas, which cross-references national geographic surveys, satellite imagery, and peer-reviewed geography sources. Because the neck of a peninsula is a geographic convention rather than a precisely measured boundary, all figures are rounded to the nearest thousand square kilometres. The order at the top is rock solid; the further down the list, the more the ranking can shift depending on which source is used.

FAQ

What defines a peninsula?

A peninsula is a piece of land almost entirely surrounded by water but connected to a larger landmass. The word comes from the Latin paeninsula meaning 'almost an island.' The key criteria are that water must border at least three sides and the land connection (the 'neck') must be narrower than the main body.

Why do area estimates for peninsulas vary?

Unlike islands, peninsulas have no exact boundary where the land connection ends. Different geographers draw the neck at different points, which can change the area by thousands of square miles. The figures here are accepted approximations from WorldAtlas and cross-referenced geographic surveys.

Is the Antarctic Peninsula not on this list?

The Antarctic Peninsula is a major geographical feature roughly 1,350 km long, but its area is difficult to measure because it is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, and its land boundary is the entire continent. Most peninsula rankings focus on inhabited landmasses with clear boundaries.

Sources