United Arab Emirates - Geography

Here, let us take a look at the Geography of United Arab Emirates. Strategic location along southern approaches to Strait of Hormuz, a transit point for crude oil; Abu Zaby (Abu Dhabi) and Dubayy (Dubai) together account for over 90% of UAE's area and two-thirds of the population. Mother's mean age at first birth is (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 3 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

Geographical data of United Arab Emirates
Location Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, between Oman and Saudi Arabia
Geographic coordinates 24 00 N, 54 00 E
Map references Middle East
Tarrain flat, barren coastal plain merging into rolling sand dunes of vast desert; mountains in east
Natural Resources petroleum, natural gas
Natural Hazards frequent sand and dust storms
Irrigated Land 940 sq km (2022)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Major aquifers
Land Boundaries 1,066 km
Border Countries Oman 609 km; Saudi Arabia 457 km
Coastline 1,318 km
Climate desert; cooler in eastern mountains
Area
Total Area
Land Area 83,600 sq km
Water Area 0 sq km
comparative Area slightly larger than South Carolina; slightly smaller than Maine
Maritime Claims
Territorial sea 12 nm
Contiguous zone 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone 200 nm
Continental shelf 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Elevations
Highest point Jabal Bil 'Ays 1,905 m
Lowest point Persian Gulf 0 m
Mean elevation 149 m
Land Use
Agricultural land 5.5% (2022 est.)
Agricultural land: arable land arable land: 0.7% (2022 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent crops permanent crops: 0.6% (2022 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent pasture permanent pasture: 4.2% (2022 est.)
Forest 4.5% (2022 est.)
Other 90% (2022 est.)
Population Distribution

Population is heavily concentrated to the northeast on the Musandam Peninsula; the three largest emirates -- Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah -- are home to nearly 85% of the population

People and Society

In United Arab Emirates, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Emirati 11.6%, South Asian 59.4% (includes Indian 38.2%, Bangladeshi 9.5%, Pakistani 9.4%, other 2.3%), Egyptian 10.2%, Filipino 6.1%, other 12.8% (2015 est.)

Population
Pop growth rate 0.6% (2024 est.)
Birth rate 10.7 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Death rate 1.7 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Health expenditure
Physicians Density
Hospital bed Density 2 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Total fertility rate 1.61 children born/woman (2024 est.)
Gross reproduction rate 0.78 (2024 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate
Est married women (ages 15-49) 72.4% (2023 est.)
Literacy
Education expenditures
Net Migration rate -3.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Nationality Emirati | Emirati(s)
Languages
Religions Muslim 74.5% (official) (Sunni 63.3%, Shia 6.7%, other 4.4%), Christian 12.9%, Hindu 6.2%, Buddhist 3.2%, agnostic 1.3%, other 1.9% (2020 est.)
Age Structure
0-14 years 16.4% (male 842,577/female 802,302)
15-64 years 81.4% (male 5,812,470/female 2,353,750)
65 years and over 2.2% (2024 est.) (male 169,084/female 52,030)
Dependency Ratios
Total dependency ratio 22.9 (2024 est.)
Youth dependency ratio 20.1 (2024 est.)
Elderly dependency ratio 2.7 (2024 est.)
Potential support ratio 36.9 (2024 est.)
Median Age
Total 35.8 years (2024 est.)
Male 38.1 years
Female 29.8 years
Urbanization
Urban population 87.8% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization 1.5% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas (Pop) 3.008 million Dubai, 1.831 million Sharjah, 1.567 million ABU DHABI (capital) (2023).
Sex Ratio
At birth 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years 2.47 male(s)/female
65 years and over 3.25 male(s)/female
Total population 2.13 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Infant Motality
Total 5 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
Male 5.5 deaths/1,000 live births
Female 4.4 deaths/1,000 live births
Life Expectancy at birth
Total population 79.9 years (2024 est.)
Male 78.6 years
Female 81.4 years
Drinking Water Sources
Improved: urban urban: 100% of population (2022 est.)
Improved: rural rural: 100% of population (2022 est.)
Improved: total total: 100% of population (2022 est.)
Unimproved: urban urban: 0% of population (2022 est.)
Unimproved: rural rural: 0% of population (2022 est.)
Unimproved: total total: 0% of population (2022 est.)
Sanitation facility acess
Improved: urban urban: 99.8% of population (2022 est.)
Improved: rural rural: 99.9% of population (2022 est.)
Improved: total total: 99.8% of population (2022 est.)
Unimproved: urban urban: 0.2% of population (2022 est.)
Unimproved: rural rural: 0.1% of population (2022 est.)
Unimproved: total total: 0.2% of population (2022 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
Total 2.03 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Beer 0.21 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Wine 0.14 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Spirits 1.65 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Other alcohols 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use
Total 10.7% (2025 est.)
Male 13.9% (2025 est.)
Female 2.4% (2025 est.)
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about United Arab Emirates

Want to know more about United Arab Emirates? Check all different factbooks for United Arab Emirates below.

United Arab Emirates is found in Western Asia