What is the highest surface area recorded in Malawi?

The highest recorded value was 118,480 sq. km in 1961.

What is the lowest surface area recorded in Malawi?

The lowest recorded value was 118,480 sq. km in 1961.

How does Malawi rank for surface area?

Malawi ranks 101st out of 216 countries with data for 2023.

Is surface area rising or falling in Malawi?

Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.

Surface area in Malawi

Name: Surface area in Malawi
Creator: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
License: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)

Malawi: Surface area was 118,480 sq. km in 2023. ▬ Flat

Latest (2023)

118,480 sq. km

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

101st

of 216 countries

All-time high

118,480 sq. km

in 1961

All-time low

118,480 sq. km

in 1961

Years of data

1961–2023

Surface area in Malawi, 1961–2023

Source: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in sq. km.

Analysis

The most recent figure for surface area in Malawi is 118,480 sq. km, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 63 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, surface area in Malawi peaked at 118,480 sq. km in 1961 and was at its lowest, 118,480 sq. km, in 1961.

That places Malawi 101st out of 216 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	9
1970s	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	10
1980s	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	10
1990s	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	10
2000s	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	10
2010s	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	10
2020s	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	118,480 sq. km	4

Countries ranked near Malawi

98 Nicaragua 130,370 sq. km compare
99 Eritrea 121,766 sq. km compare
100 North Korea 120,540 sq. km compare
102 Benin 114,760 sq. km compare
103 Honduras 112,490 sq. km compare
104 Liberia 111,370 sq. km compare

See the full ranking of 263 places →

More agriculture & rural data for Malawi

Agricultural raw materials exports 0.9% (2024)
Agricultural raw materials imports 2.7% (2024)
Rural population 82.4% (2025)
Rural population growth 2.2% (2025)
Rural population 18.31 million (2025)
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 30.0% (2025)
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 4.48 billion current US$ (2025)
Land under cereal production 2.04 million hectares (2023)
Cereal yield 1,857 kg per hectare (2023)
Cereal production 3.80 million metric tons (2023)

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is surface area in Malawi?: Surface area in Malawi was 118,480 sq. km in 2023, according to FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
What is the highest surface area recorded in Malawi?: The highest recorded value was 118,480 sq. km in 1961.
What is the lowest surface area recorded in Malawi?: The lowest recorded value was 118,480 sq. km in 1961.
How does Malawi rank for surface area?: Malawi ranks 101st out of 216 countries with data for 2023.
Is surface area rising or falling in Malawi?: Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Malawi data come from?: The figures come from FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Surface area (sq. km). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

About this data

Indicator: Surface area (sq. km)
Unit: sq. km
Source: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 263 places, 16,395 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed: 06 August 2026

Surface area is a country's total area, including areas under inland bodies of water and some coastal waterways.