Croatia is commonly said to have “a thousand islands,” but the official figure most often cited today is 1,244 islands, islets, rocks, and reefs along its Adriatic coast.

Quick Scoop

  • Croatia has about 1,244 separate sea formations (islands, islets, rocks, and reefs).
  • Of these, only around 70–80 count as “true” larger islands, depending on the definition used.
  • Roughly 47–50 of Croatia’s islands are permanently inhabited in the modern sense (at least one resident year-round).
  • The largest Croatian islands are Cres and Krk, each just over 400 square kilometers.

Experts and institutions in Croatia sometimes disagree on the exact count because it depends on where they draw the line between an island, islet, rock, or reef, so you may still see older figures like 1,185 or slight variations such as 1,246 in articles and forum discussions.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.