Mongolia is a huge, landlocked country about three times the size of France, squashed between China and Russia. It has a total area of 1,566,500 sq. km (604,830 sq. mi). It is one of the largest land-locked countries and the world's seventh largest country.

Mongolia's environment has a large variety of features. The northern part of the country is covered by forest mountain ranges and the southern part by desert, desert steppe and steppe areas with low mountains. The western part is dominated by high snow-capped mountains and glaciers and the eastern part by vast plains and wild heaths. Mongolia is one of the highest countries in the world, with an average elevation of 1,580m (5,180ft). About 81% of the country is higher than 1,000m (3,280ft) above sea level. The highest mountain is Tavanbogd Mountain in Bayan Ulgii Province at 4,370m (14,350ft) and the lowest point is Khukh Lake in the east at 560m (1,820ft).

Mongolia has comparatively high levels of surface and ground water resources. The rivers of Mongolia belong to the inland drainage basins of the Arctic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and Central Asia. The water network is of a greater density in the north of the country. The longest river is the Zavkhan River at 1,300 km (800 ml) in length. There are some 3000 rivers in total with a combined length of 67,000 km (41,200 ml). Mongolia has numerous saltwater and freshwater lakes, the largest of which is the Huvsgul Lake, which contains two per cent of the world's fresh water.