Which municipality in canton St. Gallen is the largest by area?

Mels is the largest municipality by area in canton St. Gallen, at 139.1 km² (2023).

Is water area included in the municipal area?

Yes. The figure is swisstopo's official total area including lakes, forest and unproductive land — not just the built-up zone.

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Ranking · Data 2023 · Source: BFS

The largest municipalities by area in canton St. Gallen (2023)

National ranking →

Mels is the largest municipality by area in canton St. Gallen: 139.1 km² (2023). Next come Pfäfers (128.5 km²) and Nesslau (92.7 km²). Source: swisstopo.

Ranking

swisstopo · 2023

Rank	Municipality	Area	Residents
1	Mels	139.1 km²	9'538
2	Pfäfers	128.5 km²	1'601
3	Nesslau	92.7 km²	3'833
4	Wildhaus-Alt St. Johann	87.5 km²	2'618
5	Neckertal	81.8 km²	6'437
6	Flums	75.2 km²	5'347
7	Quarten	73.2 km²	3'085
8	Eschenbach	54.9 km²	10'169
9	Grabs	54.7 km²	7'402
10	Wattwil	51.2 km²	9'161
11	Mosnang	50.5 km²	2'969
12	Walenstadt	48.8 km²	5'852
13	Amden	47.6 km²	1'906
14	Ebnat-Kappel	43.6 km²	5'092
15	Kirchberg	42.5 km²	9'755
16	Wartau	41.8 km²	5'496
17	Sennwald	41.6 km²	6'269
18	Schänis	39.9 km²	4'154
19	Altstätten	39.5 km²	12'456
20	St. Gallen	39.4 km²	78'213
21	Oberriet	34.6 km²	9'291
22	Gommiswald	33.6 km²	5'657
23	Vilters-Wangs	32.7 km²	5'057
24	Rapperswil-Jona	31.4 km²	28'640
25	Waldkirch	31.3 km²	3'544
26	Sevelen	30.3 km²	5'392
27	Gossau	27.5 km²	18'454
28	Bad Ragaz	25.4 km²	6'835
29	Gams	22.3 km²	3'711
30	Bütschwil-Ganterschwil	21.8 km²	5'202
31	Wil	20.8 km²	24'980
32	Kaltbrunn	18.6 km²	5'084
33	Oberbüren	17.7 km²	4'660
34	Benken	16.5 km²	3'035
35	Niederhelfenschwil	16.4 km²	3'256
36	Buchs	16 km²	13'931
37	Niederbüren	15.8 km²	1'497
38	Degersheim	14.5 km²	4'132
39	Uzwil	14.5 km²	14'279
40	Lütisburg	14.1 km²	1'645
41	Oberuzwil	14.1 km²	6'674
42	Gaiserwald	12.6 km²	8'609
43	Wittenbach	12.2 km²	10'026
44	Flawil	11.5 km²	10'631
45	Diepoldsau	11.3 km²	6'928
46	Jonschwil	11 km²	4'023
47	Muolen	10.3 km²	1'257
48	Mörschwil	9.8 km²	3'662
49	Thal	9.7 km²	7'097
50	Sargans	9.5 km²	6'522
51	Rüthi	9.3 km²	2'542
52	Häggenschwil	9.1 km²	1'431
53	Zuzwil	9 km²	5'026
54	Eggersriet	8.9 km²	2'475
55	Uznach	7.5 km²	7'014
56	Rorschacherberg	7.1 km²	7'685
57	Untereggen	7.1 km²	1'027
58	St. Margrethen	6.9 km²	6'558
59	Balgach	6.5 km²	5'139
60	Andwil	6.3 km²	2'128
61	Schmerikon	6 km²	4'162
62	Weesen	5.8 km²	1'871
63	Berneck	5.6 km²	3'989
64	Eichberg	5.4 km²	1'571
65	Goldach	4.7 km²	9'709
66	Au	4.7 km²	8'481
67	Steinach	4.5 km²	3'580
68	Marbach	4.4 km²	2'118
69	Rebstein	4.4 km²	5'051
70	Widnau	4.2 km²	10'337
71	Berg	3.8 km²	1'012
72	Lichtensteig	2.8 km²	2'079
73	Rheineck	2.2 km²	3'516
74	Tübach	2 km²	1'594
75	Rorschach	1.8 km²	9'955

How we measure this

swisstopo

Municipal area in square kilometres from swisstopo's official boundaries (swissBOUNDARIES3D), as of 2023. It covers the total area including forest, water and unproductive land.

Frequently asked questions

Which municipality in canton St. Gallen is the largest by area?: Mels is the largest municipality by area in canton St. Gallen, at 139.1 km² (2023).
Is water area included in the municipal area?: Yes. The figure is swisstopo's official total area including lakes, forest and unproductive land — not just the built-up zone.