Mongolia is a landlocked country located in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Mongolia covers an area of approximately 1.5 million square kilometers and has a population of around 3.3 million people. Its capital and largest city is Ulaanbaatar.

Mongolia is known for its vast and rugged landscape, which includes the Gobi Desert, mountain ranges, and grassy steppes. It is also famous for its nomadic culture, which has been practiced for thousands of years. The traditional Mongolian lifestyle centers around herding livestock, particularly horses, camels, sheep, and goats.

Tourism in Mongolia is focused mainly on outdoor activities such as trekking, horseback riding, and camping. The country is home to several national parks, including Gorkhi-Terelj National Park and Hustai National Park, which are popular with tourists. Other popular attractions include the ancient capital of Kharkhorin, the Erdene Zuu Monastery, and the Flaming Cliffs in the Gobi Desert.

Mongolia's economy is primarily based on agriculture, mining, and tourism. The country is rich in natural resources, including coal, copper, gold, and uranium. Mongolia has a semi-presidential representative democratic republic government, and its official language is Mongolian. The country's currency is the Mongolian tögrög.

Telephone Code
976

Local Emergency Phone
Ambulance: 103; Fire: 101; Police: 102

Vaccinations
See WHO recommendations


Climate
Desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges)

Currency (Code)
Togrog/tugriks (MNT)

Electricity/Voltage/Plug Type(s)
230 V / 50 Hz / plug types(s): C, E

Major Languages
Mongolian, Turkic, Russian

Major Religions
Buddhist 53%, Muslim 3%, Shamanist 2.9%, Christian 2.2%

Potable Water
Opt for bottled water

International Driving Permit
Suggested / Note: Mongolia is sparsely inhabited and most of the country's road network consists of simple cross-country tracks.

Road Driving Side
Right

Tourist Destinations
Karakorum; Gorkhi-Terelj National Park; Lake Khovsgol; Altai Tavan Bogd National Park; Orkhon Valley; Khustain Nuruu National Park; Petroglyphic Complexes of the Mongolian Altai

Major Sports
Soccer, horse racing, archery, wrestling, basketball

Cultural Practices
Displaying the middle finger outward is not the obscene gesture that it is in many western countries, but rather translates to "so-so."

Tipping Guidelines
Tipping 10% in restaurants is customary. It is accepted practice to tip guides and drivers $10-20 (USD) per person per day.

Souvenirs
Wool, cashmere, and felt goods; leather goods, woodcrafts, batik fabric items

Traditional Cuisine
Khorkhog — meat (usually goat but sometimes mutton) and vegetables cooked inside large milk jugs using hot stones and water

Geography
Area
total: 1,564,116 sq km
land: 1,553,556 sq km
water: 10,560 sq km

Climate
desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges)

Natural resources
oil, coal, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, phosphates, tin, nickel, zinc, fluorspar, gold, silver, iron

People and Society
Population
3,255,468 (2023 est.)

Ethnic groups
Khalkh 83.8%, Kazak 3.8%, Durvud 2.6%, Bayad 2%, Buriad 1.4%, Zakhchin 1.2%, Dariganga 1.1%, other 4.1% (2020 est.)

Languages
Mongolian 90% (official) (Khalkha dialect is predominant), Turkic, Russian (1999)

Religions
Buddhist 51.7%, Muslim 3.2%, Shamanist 2.5%, Christian 1.3%, other 0.7%, none 40.6% (2020 est.)

Population growth rate
0.83% (2023 est.)

Government
Government type
semi-presidential republic

Capital
name: Ulaanbaatar

Economy
Economic overview
lower middle-income East Asian economy; large human capital improvements over last 3 decades; agricultural and natural resource rich; Chinese border closures and COVID-19 hurt; growth and poverty decline mainly in rural areas

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
$39.063 billion (2021 est.)

Real GDP per capita
$11,700 (2021 est.)

Agricultural products
milk, wheat, goat milk, potatoes, mutton, sheep milk, beef, goat meat, horse meat, carrots/turnips

Industries
construction and construction materials; mining (coal, copper, molybdenum, fluorspar, tin, tungsten, gold); oil; food and beverages; processing of animal products, cashmere and natural fiber manufacturing

Exports
$8.95 billion (2021 est.)

Exports - partners
China 81%, Switzerland 9% (2019)

Exports - commodities
coal, copper, gold, iron, crude petroleum (2019)

Imports
$9.256 billion (2021 est.)

Imports - partners
China 31%, Russia 29%, Japan 10%, South Korea 5% (2019)

Imports - commodities
refined petroleum, cars, delivery trucks, construction vehicles, aircraft (2019)