Which country in Europe has the most protected land?

Liechtenstein has the most protected land in Europe: 44.8% of the land protected (2025). Next come Bulgaria (44.3% of the land protected) and Slovenia (40.4% of the land protected).

Which country in Europe has the least protected land?

Belarus, with 9.2% of the land protected (2025).

What is the typical protected land of a country in Europe?

The median of the 42 countries in Europe is 22.3% of the land protected: half are above it, half below. The median, not the average, because a few countries at the top would drag an average far above almost everyone.

Where do the figures come from?

The share of the land in national parks, nature reserves and other protected areas. Source: World Bank, 2025. Only independent states are ranked; territories are listed separately. A country’s continent follows Natural Earth; the handful of island states it files under the open ocean are placed by their UN subregion.

Countries in Europe by protected land

The share of the land in national parks, nature reserves and other protected areas. 42 countries in Europe, highest first. World Bank, 2025

See it on the map

Map: Protected land — Europe — **4.6%10%15%19%23%32%**No data

Highest

44.8%

Liechtenstein

Median country

22.3%

half above, half below

Lowest

9.2%

Belarus

Countries in Europe by protected land, World Bank, 2025
#	Country	% of land	Region
1	Liechtenstein	44.8%	Western Europe
2	Bulgaria	44.3%	Eastern Europe
3	Slovenia	40.4%	Southern Europe
4	Poland	39.6%	Eastern Europe
5	Germany	39.2%	Western Europe
6	Luxembourg	39.1%	Western Europe
7	Croatia	38.4%	Southern Europe
8	Slovakia	37.5%	Eastern Europe
9	Greece	35.0%	Southern Europe
10	Austria	29.6%	Western Europe
=11	Malta	29.0%	Southern Europe
=11	North Macedonia	29.0%	Southern Europe
13	France	28.8%	Western Europe
14	United Kingdom	28.4%	Northern Europe
15	Spain	28.1%	Southern Europe
16	Andorra	27.3%	Southern Europe
17	Romania	24.6%	Eastern Europe
18	Albania	23.6%	Southern Europe
19	Portugal	23.0%	Southern Europe
20	Netherlands	22.9%	Western Europe
21	Hungary	22.3%	Eastern Europe
22	Montenegro	22.2%	Southern Europe
23	Czechia	21.9%	Eastern Europe
24	Estonia	21.6%	Northern Europe
25	Italy	21.5%	Southern Europe
=26	Iceland	20.9%	Northern Europe
=26	Monaco	20.9%	Western Europe
28	Latvia	18.8%	Northern Europe
29	Lithuania	18.0%	Northern Europe
30	Norway	17.8%	Northern Europe
31	Ukraine	17.1%	Eastern Europe
=32	Belgium	16.4%	Western Europe
=32	Denmark	16.4%	Northern Europe
34	Sweden	15.8%	Northern Europe
35	Ireland	14.2%	Northern Europe
36	Serbia	14.0%	Southern Europe
37	Finland	13.9%	Northern Europe
38	Switzerland	12.5%	Western Europe
=39	Moldova	11.5%	Eastern Europe
=39	Russia	11.5%	Eastern Europe
41	Bosnia and Herzegovina	9.5%	Southern Europe
42	Belarus	9.2%	Eastern Europe

No World Bank figure for 2 countries: San Marino, Vatican City.

Territories and other places

Not ranked: dependencies of the states above, places whose status is disputed. Highest first.

Place	% of land	Status
Isle of Man	4.6%	Territory of United Kingdom
Faroe Islands	2.4%	Territory of Denmark

Questions

Which country in Europe has the most protected land?: Liechtenstein has the most protected land in Europe: 44.8% of the land protected (2025). Next come Bulgaria (44.3% of the land protected) and Slovenia (40.4% of the land protected).
Which country in Europe has the least protected land?: Belarus, with 9.2% of the land protected (2025).
What is the typical protected land of a country in Europe?: The median of the 42 countries in Europe is 22.3% of the land protected: half are above it, half below. The median, not the average, because a few countries at the top would drag an average far above almost everyone.
Where do the figures come from?: The share of the land in national parks, nature reserves and other protected areas. Source: World Bank, 2025. Only independent states are ranked; territories are listed separately. A country’s continent follows Natural Earth; the handful of island states it files under the open ocean are placed by their UN subregion.

Source: World Bank (CC BY 4.0). Figures more than 5 years older than the newest are left out rather than shown beside current ones. Countries sharing a value share a rank. All sources.