The Smallest country in Europe is Vatican City, which only has a small area of landlocked land in the Center of Rome. The second Smallest country is Monaco and the third is San Marino.
There are 51 countries dividing the European Continent, however, there are several other countries that have territories in both Europe and Asia: Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Russian and Turkey.
Europes Smallest Countries
The smallest country in Europe: Vatican City
The Vatican City is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church. The Vatican is Europe’s and the worlds smallest country, a ‘sovereign city-state’ ruled by the Pope. The Vatican is also known as the Holy See’s independent city-state, an enclave within Rome, Italy. The Vatican became independent from Italy with the Lateran Treaty (1929), and it is a distinct territory under “full ownership, exclusive dominion, and sovereign authority and jurisdiction” of the Holy See, itself a sovereign entity of international law, which maintains the city state’s temporal, diplomatic, and spiritual independence.
The name Vatican City was first used in the Lateran Treaty, signed on 11 February 1929, which established the modern city-state named after Vatican Hill, the geographic location of the state. “Vatican” is derived from the name of an Etruscan settlement, Vatica or Viaticum located in the general area the Romans called Ager Vaticanus, “Vatican territory”.
Size: 0.44 km²
Capital City: Vatican City
Estimated Population: 825
The second smallest country in Europe: Monaco
Monaco is the second-smallest independent state in Europe and the world. officially known as the Principality of Monaco, is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera close to the Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe. Bordered by France to the north, east and west, it is lapped by the Mediterranean Sea to the south.
Monaco has the highest population density in Europe, one of the World’s lowest unemployment rates and the world’s shortest coastline of approximately 3.83 km. The highest point in the state is a narrow pathway named Chemin des Révoires on the slopes of Mont Agel, in the Les Révoires Ward, which is 161 metres above sea level.
Monaco’s name comes from the nearby 6th-century BCE Phocaean Greek colony. Referred to by the Ligurians as Monoikos, from the Greek “μόνοικος”, “single house”, from “μόνος” (monos) “alone, single” & “οἶκος” (Oikos) “house”.
Size: 2.1 km²
Capital City: Monte Carlo
Estimated Population: 38,964
The third-smallest country in Europe: San Marino
The third-smallest country in Europe by area, the tiny Republic of San Marino is also the oldest surviving sovereign state and constitutional republic in the world, founded on 3 September 301.
The Republic of San Marino traces its origin to the early 4th century CE when St. Marinus and a group of Christians settled there to escape persecution.
San Marino became a member of the Council of Europe in 1988 and of the United Nations in 1992. It is not a member of the European Union. In 2002 San Marino replaced the Italian lira with the euro as its national currency.
Size: 61.2 km²
Capital City: San Marino
Estimated Population: 33,860
The fourth Smallest country in Europe: Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein, officially the Principality of Liechtenstein, is a German-speaking microstate situated in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland in Central Europe, Liechtenstein is the fourth-smallest country in Europe, with an area of just over 160 square kilometres, and the sixth smallest country in the World.
Liechtenstein is divided into 11 municipalities, its capital is Vaduz, and its largest municipality is Schaan. It is also the smallest country to border two countries. Liechtenstein is one of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world.
Liechtenstein is situated in the Upper Rhine valley of the European Alps and is bordered to the east by the Austrian region of Vorarlberg and to the south by the canton of Grison and to the west by the canton of St. Gallen. The entire western border of Liechtenstein is formed by the Rhine. Measured south to north the country is about 24 km long. Its highest point, the Grauspitz, is 2,599 m.
Size: 160 km²
Capital City: Vaduz
Estimated Population: 38,378
The fifth smallest country in Europe: Malta
Malta, officially known as the Republic of Malta, and formerly Melita, is a Southern European island country consisting of an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea.
Malta is the world’s tenth smallest country, with over an area of 316 km2, and the fourth-most densely populated sovereign country.
Malta has been inhabited since approximately 5900 BC.
Malta became a British colony in 1813, serving as a way station for ships and the headquarters for the British Mediterranean Fleet. It was besieged by the Axis powers during World War II and was an important Allied base for operations in North Africa and the Mediterranean.
The British parliament passed the Malta Independence Act in 1964, giving Malta independence from the United Kingdom as the State of Malta, with Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state and queen.
The country became a republic in 1974. It has been a member state of the Commonwealth of Nations and the United Nations since independence, and joined the European Union in 2004; it became part of the eurozone monetary union in 2008.
Size: 316 km²
Capital City: Valletta
Estimated Population: 502,653
The sixth smallest country in Europe: Andorra
Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a sovereign landlocked microstate on the Iberian Peninsula, in the eastern Pyrenees, bordered by France to the north and Spain to the south.
Andorra is the sixth smallest state in Europe, having an area of 468 square kilometres and the 16th-smallest country in the world by land and the 11th-smallest by population.
Andorra la Vella, is the highest capital city in Europe, at an elevation of 1,023 metres above sea level. The official language is Catalan, but Spanish, Portuguese, and French are also commonly spoken.
Size: 468 km²
Capital City: Andorra la Vella
Estimated Population: 77,142
The seventh smallest country in Europe: Luxembourg
Luxembourg is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France to the south. Luxembourg has an area of 2,586 square kilometres / 998 sq miles, making it of the smallest sovereign states in Europe and ranked 167th in size of all the 194 independent countries of the world.
Size: 2,586 km²
Capital City: Luxembourg City
Estimated Population: 613,894
The eighth smallest country in Europe: Cyprus
Cyprus is an island nation in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Cyprus is the third-largest and third most populous island in the Mediterranean. The earliest known human activity on the island dates to around the 10th millennium BC. Archaeological remains from this period include the well-preserved Neolithic village of Khirokitia, and Cyprus is home to some of the oldest water wells in the world.
Size: 9,251 km²
Capital City: Nicosia
Estimated Population: 875,899
The ninth smallest country in Europe: Kosovo
Kosovo is a partially recognised state in Southeastern Europe. Kosovo unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia on 17 February 2008 and has since gained diplomatic recognition as a sovereign state by 98 member states of the United Nations. Kosovo lies at the centre of the Balkans, occupying an area of 10,887 km2.
Size: 10,887 km²
Capital City: Pristina
Estimated Population: 1.873 million
The tenth smallest country in Europe: Montenegro
Montenegro is a country in Southeastern Europe. Montenegro is located on the Adriatic Sea. The country’s English name derives from Venetian and translates as “Black Mountain”, deriving from the appearance of Mount Lovćen when covered in dense evergreen forests.
Montenegro is a founding member of the Union for the Mediterranean. Montenegro’s administrative capital is Podgorica, though its cultural centre is the historical capital and older city of Cetinje. For much of the 20th century, Montenegro was a part of Yugoslavia, and from 2003 to 2006 it was a component of the federated union of Serbia and Montenegro.
Size: 13,812 km²
Capital City: Podgorica
Estimated Population: 622,137
List of Smallest Countries in Europe
| # | State | Total area (km2) | Population |
| 1 | Vatican | 0.44 km² | 825 |
| 2 | Monaco | 2.1 km² | 38,964 |
| 3 | San Marino | 61.2 km² | 33,860 |
| 4 | Liechtenstein | 160 km² | 38,378 |
| 5 | Malta | 316 km² | 502,653 |
| 6 | Andorra | 468 km² | 77,142 |
| 7 | Luxembourg | 2,586 km² | 613,894 |
| 8 | Cyprus | 9,251 km² | 875,899 |
| 9 | Kosovo | 10,887 km² | 1.873 million |
| 10 | Montenegro | 13,812 km² | 622,137 |
