This list of islands by area includes all islands in the world greater than 2,500 km² (970 sq mi) and several other islands over 500 km² (190 sq mi), sorted in descending order by area. For comparison, continents are also shown.

1.Greenland

Area : 2,130,800 km²,(822,706 sq mi)

Location : North Atlantic

The inhabitants of Greenland originate from Central Asia. The country is part of the North American continent, but geopolitically the island is part of Europe.

2.New Guinea

Area : 785,753 km²,(303,381 sq mi)

Location : Southwest Pacific

New Guinea is a large Island in the South West Pacific region. It is the world’s second-largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 785,753 km², and the largest wholly within the southern hemisphere.

3.Borneo

Area : 748,168km²,(288,869 sq mi)

Location : West mid-Pacific

Borneo, a giant, rugged island in Southeast Asia’s Malay Archipelago, is shared by the Malaysian states Sabah and Sarawak, Indonesian Kalimantan and the tiny nation of Brunei. It’s known for its beaches and ancient, biodiverse rainforest, home to wildlife including orangutans and clouded leopards. In Sabah is 4,095m-tall Mt. Kinabalu, the island’s highest peak, and, offshore, the famed dive site Sipadan Island.

4.Madagascar

Area : 587,713km²,(226,917 sq mi)

Location : Indian Ocean

Madagascar, a huge island nation off the southeast coast of Africa, is home to thousands of animal species – like lemurs – found nowhere else, plus rainforests, beaches and reefs. Near the busy capital, Antananarivo, is Ambohimanga, a hillside complex of royal palaces and burial grounds, as well as the “Avenue of the Baobabs,” a dirt road lined by massive centuries-old trees.

5.Baffin Island

Area : 507,451km²,(195,928 sq mi)

Location : North Atlantic

Baffin Island, in the Canadian territory of Nunavut, is the largest island in Canada and the fifth largest island in the world. Its area is 507,451 km² and its population is about 11,000.

6.Sumatra

Area : 473,481km²,(184,954 sq mi)

Location : Northeast Indian Ocean

Sumatra, a large Indonesian island west of Java and south of the Malay Peninsula, is known for its rugged tropical terrain, wildlife and smoldering volcanoes. To the north, the city of Banda Aceh, which was devastated by the 2004 tsunami, has a museum commemorating the disaster. Bustling Medan, the island’s largest city, is a diverse economic hub and gateway to North Sumatra.

7.Honshu

Area : 225,800km²,(87,182 sq mi)

Location : Sea of Japan-Pacific

Honshu is Japan’s main island and home to most of the country’s major cities and cultural sites. On the east coast is the Japanese capital, Tokyo, a busy global hub for finance, industry, fashion and cuisine. Mount Fuji, an iconic, snow-capped volcano, lies southwest of the city. In central Honshu, the city of Kyoto is famed for its Zen temples, gardens lined with cherry blossoms and traditional geisha entertainment.

8.Victoria Island

Area : 217,291km²,(83,897 sq mi)

Location : Arctic Ocean

Victoria Island is an island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and straddles the boundary between Nunavut and the Northwest Territories of Canada. It is the eighth largest island in the world, and at 217,291 km² is Canada’s second largest island.

9.Great Britain

Area : 209,331km²,(80,823 sq mi)

Location : off coast of NW Europe

Great Britain is an island separated from the European mainland by the English Channel and North Sea. It comprises the nations of England, Scotland and Wales. Its long history is evident in prehistoric sites such as Neolithic Stonehenge, and medieval castles like those at Warwick, Dover and Caernarfon. Roman ruins include Hadrian’s Wall, which once divided Roman Britain from the northern Scottish lowlands.

10.Ellesmere Island

Area : 196,236km²,(75,767 sq mi)

Location : Arctic Ocean

Ellesmere Island is part of the Qikiqtaaluk Region of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. Lying within the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, it is considered part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands