As of 2021, the Amazon basin, located in northern South America, was the largest drainage basin in the world. The Amazon River and its tributaries drain an area nearly seven million square kilometers.
Largest river drainage basins worldwide as of 2021
(in square kilometers)
River system
Drainage area in square kilometers
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A river’s drainage basin is defined as the area of land where precipitation collects and drains off, feeding the flow of rivers and their tributaries.Â
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Visual Capitalist. (March 13, 2021). Largest river drainage basins worldwide as of 2021 (in square kilometers) [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved July 16, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1221316/ten-largest-river-basin-worldwide/
Visual Capitalist. "Largest river drainage basins worldwide as of 2021 (in square kilometers)." Chart. March 13, 2021. Statista. Accessed July 16, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1221316/ten-largest-river-basin-worldwide/
Visual Capitalist. (2021). Largest river drainage basins worldwide as of 2021 (in square kilometers). Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: July 16, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1221316/ten-largest-river-basin-worldwide/
Visual Capitalist. "Largest River Drainage Basins Worldwide as of 2021 (in Square Kilometers)." Statista, Statista Inc., 13 Mar 2021, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1221316/ten-largest-river-basin-worldwide/
Visual Capitalist, Largest river drainage basins worldwide as of 2021 (in square kilometers) Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1221316/ten-largest-river-basin-worldwide/ (last visited July 16, 2024)
Largest river drainage basins worldwide as of 2021 (in square kilometers) [Graph], Visual Capitalist, March 13, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1221316/ten-largest-river-basin-worldwide/
