The longest rivers in the world
The length of a river is not an exact number: it depends on where the source is taken to be and on how finely the bends are measured. The figures here are those of Wikidata.
Relief: GEBCO Compilation Group (2026) GEBCO 2026 Grid. Rivers and lakes: Natural Earth. Map: © Protomaps, © OpenStreetMap.
The longest rivers in the world
| # | River | Length (km) | Basin (km²) | Flows into | Countries | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nile | 6,650 | 3,400,000 | Mediterranean Sea | Burundi, Egypt, Ethiopia, Rwanda, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda | Wikipedia |
| 2 | Amazon River | 6,400 | 7,050,000 | Atlantic Ocean | Brazil, Colombia, Peru | Wikipedia |
| 3 | Yangtze River | 6,300 | 1,808,500 | East China Sea | People's Republic of China | Wikipedia |
| 4 | Bian River | 5,806 | – | Arafura Sea | Indonesia | Wikipedia |
| 5 | Yellow River | 5,464 | 752,000 | Bohai Sea | People's Republic of China | Wikipedia |
| 6 | Paraná River | 4,880 | 2,582,672 | Río de la Plata | Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay | Wikipedia |
| 7 | River Congo | 4,700 | 401,450,000 | Atlantic Ocean | Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Zambia | Wikipedia |
| 8 | Mekong River | 4,350 | 810,000 | South China Sea | Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, People's Republic of China, Thailand, Vietnam | Wikipedia |
| 9 | Lena River | 4,294 | 2,490,000 | Laptev Sea | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 10 | Irtysh | 4,248 | 1,643,000 | Ob | Kazakhstan, People's Republic of China, Russia | Wikipedia |
| 11 | Niger River | 4,180 | 2,117,700 | Gulf of Guinea | Benin, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Nigeria | Wikipedia |
| 12 | Mississippi River | 3,766 | 2,981,000 | Gulf of Mexico | United States | Wikipedia |
| 13 | Missouri River | 3,726 | 1,371,010 | Mississippi River | United States | Wikipedia |
| 14 | Ob | 3,650 | 2,990,000 | Kara Sea | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 15 | Volga | 3,530 | 1,360,000 | Caspian Sea | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 16 | Yenisei | 3,487 | 2,580,000 | Kara Sea | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 17 | Yukon River | 3,190 | 832,000 | Bering Sea | Canada, United States | Wikipedia |
| 18 | Indus River | 3,180 | 1,165,000 | Arabian Sea | India, Pakistan, People's Republic of China | Wikipedia |
| 19 | Juruá River | 3,100 | 224,000 | Amazon River | Brazil, Peru | Wikipedia |
| 20 | St. Lawrence River | 3,058 | 1,344,200 | Gulf of Saint Lawrence | Canada, United States | Wikipedia |
| 21 | Rio Grande | 3,051 | 471,900 | Gulf of Mexico | Mexico, United States | Wikipedia |
| 22 | Nizhnyaya Tunguska | 2,989 | 473,000 | Yenisei | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 23 | Purus River | 2,960 | 365,000 | Solimões | Brazil | Wikipedia |
| 24 | Brahmaputra River | 2,900 | 651,334 | Ganges | Bangladesh, India, Nepal, People's Republic of China | Wikipedia |
| 25 | Danube | 2,850 | 801,463 | Black Sea | Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia | Wikipedia |
The longest rivers in Europe
| # | River | Length (km) | Basin (km²) | Flows into | Countries | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Volga | 3,530 | 1,360,000 | Caspian Sea | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 2 | Danube | 2,850 | 801,463 | Black Sea | Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia | Wikipedia |
| 3 | Ural River | 2,428 | 231,000 | Caspian Sea | Kazakhstan, Russia | Wikipedia |
| 4 | Dnieper | 2,285 | 503,500 | Dnieper Estuary | Belarus, Russia, Ukraine | Wikipedia |
| 5 | Don | 1,870 | 422,000 | Sea of Azov | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 6 | Pechora | 1,809 | 322,000 | Pechora Sea | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 7 | Kama | 1,805 | 507,000 | Volga | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 8 | Oka | 1,500 | 245,000 | Volga | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 9 | Belaya | 1,430 | 142,000 | Kama | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 10 | Dniester | 1,352 | 72,100 | Dniester Lyman | Moldova, Ukraine | Wikipedia |
| 11 | Vyatka | 1,314 | 129,000 | Kama | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 12 | Rhine | 1,233 | 185,000 | North Sea | Austria, France, Germany, Liechtenstein, Netherlands, Switzerland | Wikipedia |
| 13 | Vychegda | 1,130 | 121,000 | Northern Dvina | Russia | Wikipedia |
| 14 | Desna | 1,130 | 88,900 | Dnieper | Russia, Ukraine | Wikipedia |
| 15 | Elbe | 1,094 | 148,268 | North Sea | Czech Republic, Germany | Wikipedia |
Rivers of 1,000 km or more according to Wikidata. “Europe” means the river's coordinates on Wikidata (usually the mouth) are in Europe, up to the Urals and the Caucasus. “On the map” highlights the river's course when the Wikidata name and the Natural Earth name match.
Lengths, areas, depths, heights, names and countries: Wikidata (updated 2026-10-24). Positions: Natural Earth.