Georgia (Country) Size: 69,700 km² — Like South Carolina, Bulgaria, or Sri Lanka

Georgia (Sakartvelo) in the South Caucasus: 69,700 km² (26,911 sq mi).

Size Comparisons

Geography Drives the Feel

• Mountains dominate: Greater Caucasus (north border, >5,000 m: Shkhara 5,193 m), Lesser Caucasus (south/central).
• Lowlands: Kolkheti (Black Sea coast), Alazani (Kakheti wine), Mtkvari (Kura) river valley.
• Climate range: Subtropical coast (batumi, tea, citrus) → alpine (Svaneti, Kazbegi) → semi-arid steppe (Vashlovani, David Gareja).
• 26% forest, 3% glacier, 40%+ pasture.

Neighbors & Context

• North: Russia (Chechnya, Dagestan, Kabardino-Balkaria, North Ossetia, Ingushetia).
• South: Turkey, Armenia.
• Southeast: Azerbaijan.
• West: Black Sea (310 km coastline).

Why Size Misleads

Mountain terrain = low population density (57/km², 3.7M people). Travel distances: Tbilisi to Batumi (350 km) = 5–6h drive (mountain passes). Functional regions are smaller than map area suggests.

Georgia is compact but vertically vast—a continent's worth of ecosystems in a South Carolina footprint.