Spain

Southwestern Europe, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, Bay of Biscay, and Pyrenees Mountains; southwest of France

40 00 N, 4 00 W

Europe

almost five times the size of Kentucky; slightly more than twice the size of Oregon

4,964 km

temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast

large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees Mountains in north

coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten, mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land

38,012 sq km (2022)

with the notable exception of Madrid, Sevilla, and Zaragoza, the largest urban agglomerations are found along the Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts; numerous smaller cities are spread throughout the interior; very dense settlement around the capital of Madrid, as well as the port city of Barcelona

strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar; Spain controls a number of territories in northern Morocco, including the enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla and the islands of Penon de Velez de la Gomera, Penon de Alhucemas, and Islas Chafarinas; Spain's Canary Islands are one of four North Atlantic archipelagos that make up Macaronesia; the others are the Azores (Portugal), Madeira (Portugal), and Cabo Verde

Spanish 84.8%, Moroccan 1.7%, Romanian 1.2%, other 12.3% (2021 est.)

Roman Catholic 58.2%, atheist 16.2%, agnostic 10.8%, other 2.7%, non-believer 10.5%, unspecified 1.7% (2021 est.)

0.12% (2025 est.)

7.16 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

9.98 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

3.98 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

with the notable exception of Madrid, Sevilla, and Zaragoza, the largest urban agglomerations are found along the Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts; numerous smaller cities are spread throughout the interior; very dense settlement around the capital of Madrid, as well as the port city of Barcelona

6.751 million MADRID (capital), 5.687 million Barcelona, 838,000 Valencia (2023)

31.2 years (2020 est.)

3 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

1.32 children born/woman (2025 est.)

0.65 (2025 est.)

4.29 physicians/1,000 population (2022)

2.9 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)

23.8% (2016)

50.2% (2021 est.)

parliamentary constitutional monarchy

civil law system with regional variations

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CABEI, CAN (observer), CBSS (observer), CD, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAIA (observer), MIGA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), Schengen Convention, SELEC (observer), SICA (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNOCI, UNOOSA, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

1492

National Day (Hispanic Day), 12 October (1492)

Pillars of Hercules

red, yellow

high-income, core-EU and eurozone economy; strong growth driven by public consumption, tourism, and other service exports; tight labor market despite high structural unemployment; efforts to narrow persistent fiscal deficits through tax and spending measures; high but declining unemployment supported by job growth and immigration

$1.723 trillion (2024 est.)

milk, olives, pork, grapes, wheat, tomatoes, barley, sugar beets, maize, oranges (2023)

textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages, metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles, machine tools, tourism, clay and refractory products, footwear, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment

2.6% (2024 est.)

24.386 million (2024 est.)

20.2% (2022 est.)

15% (of GDP) (2023 est.)

France 15%, Germany 10%, Portugal 9%, Italy 9%, UK 6% (2023)

cars, packaged medicine, refined petroleum, vehicle parts/accessories, garments (2023)

Germany 11%, China 10%, France 10%, Italy 7%, USA 7% (2023)

crude petroleum, cars, garments, vehicle parts/accessories, natural gas (2023)

mix of publicly operated and privately owned TV and radio stations; hundreds of TV channels available, including national, regional, local, public, and international channels; satellite and cable TV available; multiple national radio networks, large number of regional radio networks, and larger number of local radio stations (2019)

.es

EC

365 (2025)

162 (2025)

approximately 120,000 active-duty military personnel; approximately 80,000 Guardia Civil (2025)

the military's inventory is comprised of weapons and equipment that were produced domestically, co-produced with or imported from other European countries, or acquired from the US; key suppliers of major armaments include Germany and the US; Spain's defense industry manufactures land, air, and sea weapons systems and is integrated within the European defense-industrial sector (2025)

18 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women (upper age limits depend on branch of service, roles, specialties, etc); 24-36 month initial obligation; no conscription, but the Spanish Government retains the right to mobilize citizens 19-25 years of age in a national emergency; 18-58 for the voluntary reserves (2026)

Spain has up to 3,000 military personnel deployed on 17 missions supporting the EU, NATO, and the UN on four continents, as well as naval missions in the Mediterranean and the seas off the Horn of Africa; its largest deployments are up to 700 troops in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and about 1,700 personnel in Eastern Europe supporting NATO missions in Latvia, Romania, and Slovakia (2025)