Chihuahuan Desert Map
The Chihuahuan Desert is a desert across the United States and Mexico, covering about 363,000 km² (140,000 sq mi). This map shows its extent on shaded relief, with the surrounding mountains, rivers, borders and cities.
How to read this map
The Chihuahuan Desert is about 363,000 km² (140,000 sq mi) in area. It extends across the United States and Mexico. Its typical elevation is about 1,545 m (5,069 ft).
The dashed outline marks the Chihuahuan Desert as mapped by Natural Earth. Towns and cities on the map include Monterrey, Phoenix, San Antonio, Ciudad Juárez, Austin, Torreón, Albuquerque and Aguascalientes City. Labeled states and countries: Mexico, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.
Greens show lower elevations; tan and brown show higher land, with pale tones toward the highest terrain. Shadows emphasize the slopes, and vertical relief is exaggerated so landforms are easier to read. Dashed lines show country borders, and fine dashed lines show state or province borders.
The relief uses Terrain Tiles (SRTM, GMTED2010 and ETOPO1 elevation data). Rivers, lakes, borders and the outline of the Chihuahuan Desert come from Natural Earth, and the figures on this page from Wikidata. Natural Earth draws features at a small scale, so the outline is a guide to where the Chihuahuan Desert is, not a surveyed boundary.
Blank physical map
The blank version keeps the mapped features and removes the place labels. Download it for a geography worksheet or practice identifying the features.
Chihuahuan Desert facts
| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Length | 1,280 km (795 mi) |
| Area | 363,000 km² (140,000 sq mi) |
| Countries | the United States and Mexico |
| US states | Texas, New Mexico and Arizona |
Data sources and license
- Natural Earth (public-domain geography): Public domain.
- Terrain Tiles / Mapzen (SRTM, GMTED2010, ETOPO1): Open elevation data; source attribution retained.
- Wikidata (lengths, areas, countries and other facts): CC0 1.0.
Map design and rendered images: Atlas of Maps, CC BY 4.0. Source databases retain their own licenses; the map license does not replace them.
Maps of the countries: United States, Mexico. Compare with the world mountain ranges map.
Frequently asked questions
How big is the Chihuahuan Desert?
About 363,000 km² (140,000 sq mi).
Where is the Chihuahuan Desert?
The Chihuahuan Desert is in the United States and Mexico.
Can I download a blank map of the Chihuahuan Desert?
Yes. The blank version keeps the relief, rivers and borders and the highlighted desert but removes the place names. Both versions are free to download as PNG and as an A4 PDF.
Use this map
You can download, print and share this map for free, in class, in school projects, in presentations and on websites, as long as you credit the source: Chihuahuan Desert Map · Atlas of Maps (atlasofmaps.com), license CC BY 4.0.
More maps of deserts
- Sonoran Desert Map
- Great Salt Lake Desert Map
- Big Bend Map
- Black Rock Desert Map
- Sahara Desert Map
- Gobi Desert Map
- Kalahari Desert Map
- Namib Desert Map
- Rub' al Khali (Empty Quarter) Map
- Atacama Desert Map
- Thar Desert Map
- Syrian Desert Map
- Karakum Desert Map
- Kyzylkum Desert Map
- Great Victoria Desert Map
- Great Sandy Desert Map
- Gibson Desert Map
- Simpson Desert Map
- Taklamakan Desert Map
- Libyan Desert Map
- Nubian Desert Map
- Negev Desert Map
- Dasht-e Kavir Map
- Dasht-e Lut Map