Kalahari Desert Map
The Kalahari Desert is a desert across Botswana, Namibia, Angola and South Africa, covering about 930,000 km² (359,000 sq mi). This map shows its extent on shaded relief, with the surrounding mountains, rivers, borders and cities.
How to read this map
The Kalahari Desert is about 930,000 km² (359,000 sq mi) in area. It extends across Botswana, Namibia, Angola and South Africa. Its typical elevation is about 1,168 m (3,832 ft).
The dashed outline marks the Kalahari Desert as mapped by Natural Earth. Towns and cities on the map include Johannesburg, Cape Town, Lubumbashi, Pretoria, Lusaka, Huambo, Vereeniging and Bloemfontein. Labeled countries: Angola, South Africa, Namibia, Zambia and Botswana.
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.
The relief uses Terrain Tiles (SRTM, GMTED2010 and ETOPO1 elevation data). Rivers, lakes, borders and the outline of the Kalahari 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 Kalahari 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.
Kalahari Desert facts
| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Length | 4,000 km (2,490 mi) |
| Area | 930,000 km² (359,000 sq mi) |
| Highest point | Brandberg, 2,573 m (8,442 ft) |
| Countries | Botswana, Namibia, Angola and South Africa |
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: Botswana, Namibia, Angola, South Africa. Compare with the world mountain ranges map.
Frequently asked questions
How big is the Kalahari Desert?
About 930,000 km² (359,000 sq mi).
Where is the Kalahari Desert?
The Kalahari Desert is in Botswana, Namibia, Angola and South Africa.
Can I download a blank map of the Kalahari 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: Kalahari Desert Map · Atlas of Maps (atlasofmaps.com), license CC BY 4.0.
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