Finland - Geography

Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Finland. Long boundary with Russia; Helsinki is northernmost national capital on European continent; population concentrated on small southwestern coastal plain. Mother's mean age at first birth is 29.5 years (2020 est.) (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 8 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Geographical data of Finland
Location Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Finland, between Sweden and Russia
Geographic coordinates 64 00 N, 26 00 E
Map references Europe
Tarrain mostly low, flat to rolling plains interspersed with lakes and low hills
Natural Resources timber, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, nickel, gold, silver, limestone
Natural Hazards severe winters in the north
Irrigated Land 80 sq km (2015)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Major aquifers
Land Boundaries 2,563 km
Border Countries Norway 709 km; Sweden 545 km; Russia 1,309 km
Coastline 1,250 km
Climate cold temperate; potentially subarctic but comparatively mild because of moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current, Baltic Sea, and more than 60,000 lakes
Area
Total Area
Land Area 303,815 sq km
Water Area 34,330 sq km
comparative Area slightly more than two times the size of Georgia; slightly smaller than Montana
Maritime Claims
Territorial sea 12 nm (in the Gulf of Finland - 3 nm)
Contiguous zone 24 nm
Continental shelf 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Exclusive fishing zone 12 nm; extends to continental shelf boundary with Sweden, Estonia, and Russia
Elevations
Highest point Halti (alternatively Haltia, Haltitunturi, Haltiatunturi) 1,328 m
Lowest point Baltic Sea 0 m
Mean elevation 164 m
Land Use
Agricultural land 7.5% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: arable land arable land: 7.4% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent crops permanent crops: 0% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent pasture permanent pasture: 0.1% (2018 est.)
Forest 72.9% (2018 est.)
Other 19.6% (2018 est.)
Population Distribution

The vast majority of people are found in the south; the northern interior areas remain sparsely populated

People and Society

In Finland, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Finnish, Swedish, Russian, Estonian, Romani, Sami

Population
Pop growth rate 0.2% (2024 est.)
Birth rate 10.2 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Death rate 10.4 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Health expenditure 9.6% of GDP (2020)
Physicians Density
Hospital bed Density 3.6 beds/1,000 population (2018)
Total fertility rate 1.74 children born/woman (2024 est.)
Gross reproduction rate 0.85 (2024 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate 85.5% (2015)
Est married women (ages 15-49) 57.2% (2023 est.)
Literacy
Education expenditures 5.9% of GDP (2020 est.)
Net Migration rate 2.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Nationality Finnish | Finn(s)
Languages
Religions Lutheran 66.6%, Greek Orthodox 1.1%, other 1.7%, none 30.6% (2022 est.)
Age Structure
0-14 years 16.2% (male 464,939/female 444,585)
15-64 years 60.3% (male 1,725,072/female 1,668,604)
65 years and over 23.5% (2024 est.) (male 583,645/female 739,569)
Dependency Ratios
Total dependency ratio 62.1
Youth dependency ratio 25
Elderly dependency ratio 37.1
Potential support ratio 2.7 (2021 est.)
Median Age
Total 43.3 years (2024 est.)
Male 41.8 years
Female 44.9 years
Urbanization
Urban population 85.8% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization 0.42% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas (Pop) 1.338 million HELSINKI (capital) (2023).
Sex Ratio
At birth 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over 0.79 male(s)/female
Total population 0.97 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Infant Motality
Total 2.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
Male 2.3 deaths/1,000 live births
Female 1.9 deaths/1,000 live births
Life Expectancy at birth
Total population 82.2 years (2024 est.)
Male 79.3 years
Female 85.2 years
Drinking Water Sources
Improved: urban urban: 100% of population
Improved: rural rural: 100% of population
Improved: total total: 100% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: 0% of population
Unimproved: rural rural: 0% of population
Unimproved: total total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
Sanitation facility acess
Improved: urban urban: 100% of population
Improved: rural rural: 100% of population
Improved: total total: 100% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: 0% of population
Unimproved: rural rural: 0% of population
Unimproved: total total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
Total 8.23 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Beer 3.76 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Wine 1.59 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Spirits 1.96 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Other alcohols 0.91 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use
Total 21.6% (2020 est.)
Male 26.9% (2020 est.)
Female 16.3% (2020 est.)
Child marriage
Women married by age 18 0.1% (2017 est.)
Demographic profile

Finland has a relatively high fertility rate for Europe at about 1.75 children per woman in 2023.  Finnish women have high labor force participation rates, and their educational attainment is higher than that of Finnish men. Finland’s family policy, like other Nordic countries, puts an emphasis on reconciling work and family life.  Both parents can stay at home with an earnings-based allowance until the baby is about 11 months old.  Finland also has a publicly subsidized childcare system.  Alternatively, parents can choose to take care of a small child through home care leave with a flat allowance rate.  These benefits have encouraged fathers to do a greater share of housework and childcare, although women still perform the lion’s share of domestic work.  In other instances, women have reduced the burden of household work by outsourcing domestic chores, rather than men taking on more of the responsibilities.  Finland has high family size ideals compared to other European countries, and childlessness and one-child families are not favored.  The proportion of couples having at least three children has been growing since the 1970s.

Finland has historically been a country of emigration.  In the 20th century, Finns emigrated largely in two waves.  Before World War II, the majority of Finns went to North America, and after World War II most went to Sweden, where industrialization was generating much-needed jobs that offered higher salaries and a better standard of living.  In the 1980s and early 1990s, Finnish returnees (mainly from Sweden) began to outnumber Finnish emigrants.  Also arriving in Finland between April 1990 and 2010, were Ingrian Finns – descendants of ethnic Finns who settled near St. Petersburg, Russia, in the 17th century – who immigrated to Finland under the Right of Return Law.  In addition, the country has absorbed immigrants from Russia, Estonia, the former Yugoslavia, and Sweden for a variety of reasons, most commonly for marriage and family reunification.  Finland has also accepted refugees and asylum seekers from Somalia, Iraq, China, and Thailand.

All Important Facts about Finland

Want to know more about Finland? Check all different factbooks for Finland below.

Finland is found in Northern Europe