Whenever you think of the largest islands in the world, probably the first things that come into your mind are either tropical paradises or very remote frozen areas. However, knowing the biggest islands on Earth by land area gives us a very good idea of the planet’s geography scale and of the diversity of the different environments, both natural and human, living on them.
The largest island of all, Greenland, has an area of more than 2.16 million km². Besides which, it might even astonish you to know that some of the biggest islands are almost as big as continents. This, in turn, means that islands are not merely charming little hideaways, but they have the potential of being huge regions with their own ecosystems, cultures, and difficulties.
This blog looks at the top 5 biggest islands in the world, explores some of their key features, and draws out what they tell us about land, people and nature.
Greenland – the largest islands in the world
Greenland holds the top spot. At about 2,166,086 km² it dwarfs most countries. Situated between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, Greenland is mostly ice-covered and sparsely populated. It is an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.
The human settlement is concentrated along the coast, where ice recedes enough for towns and airports. Its scale is hard to grasp. For comparison: Greenland has an area that is about three times bigger than Texas. Ice sheets, low temperature, and isolated coastal towns characterize Greenland and at the same time, make it a very interesting place of extreme nature and human adaptability.
- Geographical Extent: Covers about 2,166,086 square kilometers, making it the largest islands in the world by areathat is not a continent.
- Ice Coverage: Nearly 80% of Greenland’s surface is covered by the Greenland Ice Sheet, which holds about 10% of the world’s freshwater.
- Political Status: It is an autonomous territory under the Kingdom of Denmark, with Nuuk as its capital.
New Guinea – second largest islands in the world and its unique landscape
The island measuring about 821,400 km² is New Guinea which is the second-largest islands of the world. A tropical island, it is divided between two countries (Indonesia and Papua New Guinea), and it has thick forests, lofty peaks, and the most diverse and richest in species habitats on the planet.
One interesting detail: parts of New Guinea receive more than 300 inches of rain per year, making them among the wettest places on Earth. The human story there involves remote tribes, languages that number in the hundreds and landscapes rarely seen by mainstream tourism. New Guinea shows how an island’s size can allow both vast wilderness and deep cultural diversity.
- Land Area: Approximately 821,400 square kilometers, ranking as the second largest islands in the world.
- Political Division: Shared by two nations, Papua New Guinea to the east and Indonesia to the west.
- Biodiversity: Known for exceptional biological richness, home to more than 5% of the world’s species, including birds of paradise and unique marsupials.
Borneo – third largest islands in the world and a biodiversity hotspot
The third-largest island is Borneo, with an area around 748,168 km² according to many sources. Borneo spans three countries (Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei) and is home to dense rainforests, countless species, and dramatic environmental change.
For example, Borneo hosts one of the largest varieties of tree species and an endangered great ape, the orangutan. The island serves as a demonstration of how ecosystems can thrive when the area is sufficiently large, and simultaneously of how mankind’s activities such as industry, deforestation, and resource extraction can affect those ecosystems over a vast area. Borneo’s dimensions give it both potential and duty.
- Size: The area is approximately 748,168 square kilometers, hence, it is the third largest non-continental islandin the world.
- Shared Governance: It is a territory of three countries, namely, Indonesia (Kalimantan), Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak), and Brunei.
- Ecological Importance: The island’s forests are the oldest on Earth along with the Amazon, estimated at 140 million years, and they support the world’s biodiversity.
Madagascar – fourth largest islands in the world with one-of-a-kind wildlife
Standing fourth among the world’s largest islands is Madagascar. It covers roughly 587,295 km². Madagascar lies off the eastern coast of Africa and has been isolated for tens of millions of years. That isolation created some of the most unique wildlife on Earth: lemurs, fossa, and hundreds of species found nowhere else.
The island’s size matters here because it allowed evolutionary processes to proceed with fewer interruptions from external land-continents. At the same time, Madagascar faces challenges: deforestation, habitat loss and poverty among its people. The story of Madagascar shows how an island’s large area does not guarantee ecosystem protection, it also requires sustainable practices.
- Land Area: Approximately 587,295 sq km, thus it is the 4th biggest islands on Earth.
- Unique Species: Almost all of its fauna, comprising more than 100 varieties of lemurs, is exclusive to the island, which is almost 90% the case.
- Cultural Blend: Ni Madagasca’s people are of African and Asian descent resulting in the birth of a unique cultural and linguistic identity.
Baffin Island – fifth largest islands in the world and an Arctic giant
The fifth place is taken by Baffin Island which is a part of northern Canada. The total land area of the island is around 507,451 square kilometers. Geographically, Baffin Island is situated between Greenland and mainland Canada within the Arctic Archipelago. The island is isolated and very cold, having only a few inhabitants. The population in the area is very sparse. Baffin Island’s importance is mainly due to its challenging nature with glaciers, mountains, tundra and coastlines where icebergs are found.
The indigenous Inuit people have been living for ages with their culture and practices that are entirely suited to the conditions prevailing there. As far as the global climate is concerned, the places like Baffin Island act as early indicators of warming, melting ice and changing ecosystems. Because of its vastness, it plays an important part in the overall picture of Earth’s geography and environment, even though not many people reside there.
- Area: Covers an area of about 507,451 square kilometers, which places it in the fifth position worldwide.
- Climate: The climate has Arctic tundra and long very cold winters when the temperature goes far below freezing for almost the whole year.
- Human Life: A place of small Inuit settlements like Iqaluit that is the capital of Nunavut and a center of Arctic research.
What this means: scale, environment and human-impact takeaways
Here are three key lessons when you look at the five largest islands in the world:
- Scale matters: Each of these islands covers hundreds of thousands of square kilometers. They are roughly the size of entire countries. For example, Baffin Island alone is larger than many nations.
- Environment varies hugely: From Greenland’s ice‐sheet dominated terrain to Madagascar’s tropical forests, to Baffin Island’s Arctic conditions. Being large gives an island space for dramatic variation in life, climate and geology.
- Human impact has reach: On large islands, human settlement, traditions, biodiversity and resource extraction all intersect. Borneo faces rainforest loss; Madagascar faces habitat pressure; Greenland and Baffin Island are indicators of climate change. Size does not protect an island from environmental or cultural change, or from being strategically important.
What this really means is that islands are microcosms of our planet. They are biggest landmasses surrounded by water, yes, but for these five large ones, they are almost mini-continents. They host human life, natural complexity and global significance.
Conclusion
When you finish reading about the 5 largest islands in the world you recognise more than geography. You recognise how land, water, climate and human culture combine in vast spaces. Greenland, New Guinea, Borneo, Madagascar and Baffin Island each tell a story of size, environment and human presence.
The main point is the following: The extent provides chances, but it also carries the burden of obligation. These isles indicate that we have to recognize the ecosystems, alter our ways according to the climate and not forget that even the most isolated areas are part of the global network. The next time you check a map and sees a huge island, you will know: it is not just a piece of land, it is a complete universe, and it counts.
