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River

Aare

295 km from source to mouth · Switzerland.

SwitzerlandSwitzerlandFlows into Rhine1st longest in Switzerland

Follow the riverMonth by month

SourceMouthBern
The river and every tributary in its basin, drawn from RiverATLAS (CC BY 4.0).

In numbers

Length

295km

Average flow

560m³/s

Basin

17,800km²

Drop

1,463m

from 1,772 m to 309 m

Country

1

The journey

From source to mouth

295 km of river and 68 stops on the way: 45 towns and cities on its banks, dams, bridges and the tributaries that feed it.

1,772 m309 m
Aar Glaciersat 1,772 m0 km
Reichenbach Falls27 km
Lake Brienz29 km²56 km
Thun43,905 people84 km
Bern136,988 people116 km
Wohlen bei Bern9,281 people128 km
Thielletributary156 km
Biel/Bienne55,932 people167 km
Solothurn16,847 people198 km
Olten19,051 people240 km
Aarau22,710 people255 km
Rhineat 309 m295 km
0100200295 km
  1. 0 kmAar Glaciersat 1,772 m
  2. 0 kmOberaarsee0.9 km²
  3. 5 kmGrimselsee3.0 km²
  4. 7 kmRäterichsbodensee0.5 km²
  5. 9 kmGelmersee0.3 km²
  6. 10 kmHandek
  7. 27 kmReichenbach Falls
  8. 28 kmMeiringen4,621 people
  9. 42 kmBrienz3,090 people
  10. 56 kmLake Brienz29 km²
  11. 58 kmLütschinetributary
  12. 58 kmMatten bei Interlaken4,201 people
  13. 58 kmInterlaken6,123 people
  14. 59 kmUnterseen5,757 people
  15. 81 kmKandertributary
  16. 82 kmLake Thun46 km²
  17. 84 kmThun43,905 people
  18. 85 kmSteffisburg15,709 people
  19. 87 kmUetendorf5,892 people
  20. 96 kmWichtrach4,294 people
  21. 101 kmMünsingen12,724 people
  22. 105 kmBelp11,510 people
  23. 109 kmMuri bei Bern13,318 people
  24. 110 kmKehrsatz4,302 people
  25. 114 kmKöniz42,958 people
  26. 116 kmBern136,988 people
  27. 119 kmSulgenbachtributary
  28. 121 kmBremgarten bei Bern4,386 people
  29. 128 kmWohlen bei Bern9,281 people
  30. 135 kmLake Wohlen1.9 km²
  31. 145 kmSaane/Sarinetributary
  32. 147 kmAarberg4,629 people
  33. 156 kmThielletributary
  34. 165 kmLake Biel38 km²
  35. 166 kmNidau6,815 people
  36. 167 kmBiel/Bienne55,932 people
  37. 167 kmSuzetributary
  38. 170 kmBrügg4,388 people
  39. 178 kmBüren an der Aare3,806 people
  40. 185 kmGrenchen17,140 people
  41. 193 kmBellach5,214 people
  42. 198 kmSolothurn16,847 people
  43. 198 kmBiberist8,567 people
  44. 199 kmZuchwil8,875 people
  45. 201 kmEmmetributary
  46. 220 kmAarwangen4,561 people
  47. 234 kmRothrist9,896 people
  48. 235 kmWiggertributary
  49. 236 kmAarburg8,917 people
  50. 239 kmDünnerntributary
  51. 240 kmOlten19,051 people
  52. 240 kmTrimbach6,543 people
  53. 255 kmAarau22,710 people
  54. 257 kmKüttigen6,997 people
  55. 257 kmSuhretributary
  56. 263 kmRupperswil5,486 people
  57. 266 kmMöriken-Wildegg4,438 people
  58. 276 kmBrugg15,234 people
  59. 276 kmWindisch7,654 people
  60. 277 kmGebenstorf5,807 people
  61. 279 kmLimmattributary
  62. 279 kmReusstributary
  63. 279 kmUntersiggenthal7,812 people
  64. 281 kmWürenlingen5,262 people
  65. 285 kmBöttstein4,326 people
  66. 288 kmDöttingen4,561 people
  67. 290 kmKlingnau3,700 people
  68. 292 kmKlingnauer Stausee0.9 km²
  69. 294 kmKoblenz AG1,821 people
  70. 295 kmRhineat 309 m

Water level along the river (RiverATLAS; the height is exaggerated). Towns: GeoNames and Wikidata; bridges, dams and tributaries: Wikidata.

River in Switzerland and tributary of the Rhine

At the mouth it carries 560 m³/s on average: an Olympic pool every 4.5 seconds. It drops from 1,772 m to 309 m, 5.0 m per kilometre on average. Its basin covers 17,800 km², about the size of KW. 3.7 million people live in it. Highest water: February, April and August. Its dams hold back little of its water (6.4% of a year's flow).

Read more on Wikipedia

Where to start

  • BernLargest city on its banks · 136,988 people
  • Bern Airport (BRN)Nearest airport with scheduled flights, 6 km from the cityCar hire at BRN airport (Bern)Discover Cars · Affiliate link
  • On the water204 ferry piers, marinas, boat rentals and boat ramps along the river (OpenStreetMap)
  • Kayak and canoe6 put-ins and rapids mapped (OpenStreetMap)
  • From June to SeptemberThe best months to visit

Aare, month by month

Highest water: February, April and August

Best months to visit: from June to September.

350
0°70 mmJan
770
1°66 mmFeb
660
4°62 mmMar
780
8°72 mmApr
510
12°88 mmMay
610
16°107 mmJun
610
18°96 mmJul
720
17°118 mmAug
620
14°79 mmSep
540
10°62 mmOct
570
4°82 mmNov
620
1°69 mmDec
Water (estimated flow)Air (average) Rain (mm)Best months

From about 350 m³/s in the lowest month to 780 m³/s in the highest. An estimate: the monthly flow is modelled from the lowest and highest months of WaterGAP (RiverATLAS, 1971–2000) and the rain and snow along the river (WorldClim). Dams change the real rhythm. The chip is the average air temperature; below it, the month's rain.

Plan the trip

Plan the trip: boat trips, a bed by the river, a car

Car hire at BRN airport (Bern)Discover CarsSee 

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

The basin

Aare: the basin in numbers

17,504 km² of land send their water to this river. This is what lives on it.

Lightly regulatedReservoirs can hold 6.4% of a year's flow.
  • 3.7millionpeople live in the basin
  • 223/km²people per km²
  • 1,065maverage altitude of the basin
  • 1,291mmof rain a year (basin average)
  • 6.1°Caverage air temperature
  • 8%protected areas
  • 4.0%covered by lakes
  • 2%glaciers
  • 2%permafrost
  • 1.1km³held in reservoirs

What covers the basin

  • 59% Forest
  • 11% Cropland
  • 27% Pasture
  • 13% Towns and cities
  • 2% Ice

RiverATLAS (HydroATLAS v1.0, CC BY 4.0): land cover, people, protected areas, glaciers and dams over the whole basin upstream of the mouth.

Along the river

Aare: what you find on the way

  • 26DamsTrübtensee, Alte Spitallamm, Spitallamm and 23 more
  • 185WeirsStaatsschleuse, Untere Schleuse, Energie Thun and 182 more
  • 3Locks
  • 51WaterfallsSchräybach-Wasserfall, Reichenbach Falls, Reichenbachfall and 48 more
  • 2RapidsBahnbrücke Uttigen, Uttigenschwelle
  • 4Canoe put-insInnertkirchen, Thun, Aarberg and 1 more
  • 86Boat rampsEinwasserungsstelle, Boot-Transportanlage, Sliprampe and 83 more
  • 65Ferry piersBrienz (See), Brienz Dorf, Giessbach and 62 more
  • 46MarinasSC Neuhaus, Därligen, Leissigen and 43 more
  • 7Boat rentalsPirate Bay ️ Nautical Center + Hot Tub Boat, Kayakomat Thun Gwatt, Honu SUP Center and 4 more
  • 9River beachesDr. H. Spreng-Bucht, Sundlauenen Beach, Nase and 6 more

From OpenStreetMap, within 1.9 km of the river. Not mapped is not the same as not there.

Cross-checked with our atlases

Aare in our other atlases

What our sister atlases know about the waterfalls on this river, the lakes it flows through, the beaches at its mouth, the mountains where it rises and the islands off its mouth.

  • 2waterfalls on the riverCascadyas
  • 9lakes on its wayLakeyas
  • 211mountains at the sourcePeakyas

Waterfalls (2)

On the river, by Cascadyas

  1. Handekkm 10
  2. Reichenbach Fallskm 26

Cascadyas is coming soonOpen Cascadyas ↗

Lakes and reservoirs (9)

Lakes it flows through, by Lakeyas

  1. Oberaarseekm 0 · 90 m deep0.9km²
  2. Grimselseekm 5 · 42 m deep3.0km²
  3. Gelmerseekm 90.3km²
  4. Lake Brienzkm 55 · 260 m deep29km²
  5. Lake Thunkm 80 · 217 m deep46km²
  6. Lake Wohlenkm 1311.9km²
  7. Lake Bielkm 160 · 74 m deep38km²
  8. Klingnauer Stauseekm 283 · 500 m deep0.9km²

1 more on LakeyasLakeyas is coming soonOpen Lakeyas ↗

Mountains at the source (211)

Within 15 km of the source, by Peakyas

  1. Finsteraarhorn12 km away · prominence 2,278 m4,274m
  2. Schreckhorn13 km away · prominence 795 m4,078m
  3. Lauteraarhorn12 km away · prominence 128 m4,042m
  4. Agassizhorn13 km away · prominence 200 m3,947m
  5. Dammastock14 km away · prominence 1,467 m3,630m
  6. Galenstock12 km away · prominence 252 m3,586m
  7. Mittelhorn14 km away · prominence 578 m3,702m
  8. Bärglistock12 km away · prominence 223 m3,655m

203 more on PeakyasOpen Peakyas ↗

From space

The source and the mouth, seen from orbit

Aare: satellite view of the source
The source14 km across
Aare: satellite view of the mouth
The mouth18 km across

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2016), CC BY 4.0. The glowing line is the river as drawn by RiverATLAS.

Photos

Aare in pictures

Gedeckte Holzbrücke in Wangen a. d. Aare
JoachimKohler-HB · CC BY-SA 4.0
Aare, Nydeggkirche & Untertorbrücke in Bern
JoachimKohler-HB · CC BY-SA 4.0
Berner Muenster mit Plattform und Aare
Wladyslaw · CC BY-SA 3.0
Aare by Interlaken-Ost
Christian David · CC BY-SA 4.0

Tributaries

Where it flows, and what flows into it

It flows into

RhineThe NetherlandsThe Netherlands1,233 km2,200 m³/s

Tributaries (38)

ReussSwitzerlandSwitzerland159 km130 m³/sjoins at km 270LimmatSwitzerlandSwitzerland140 km100 m³/sjoins at km 270Saane/SarineSwitzerlandSwitzerland126 km54 m³/sjoins at km 141

Also: Emme, Kander, Lütschine, Wigger, Thielle, Suze, Suhre, Aabach (Seetal), Dünnern, Gürbe, Gadmerwasser, Surb, Alte Aare, Worble River, Ösch, Zulg, Chise River, Reichenbach, Önz, Glütschbach (Aare), Murg, Sulgenbach, Stadtbach, Chräbsbach

In the same basin

MoselleGermanyGermany544 km320 m³/sMainGermanyGermany524 km200 m³/sNeckarGermanyGermany362 km140 m³/sLahnGermanyGermany242 km54 m³/sRuhrGermanyGermany217 km79 m³/sSaarGermanyGermany246 km78 m³/sLippeGermanyGermany255 km240 m³/sIllFranceFrance217 km54 m³/sSiegGermanyGermany155 km52 m³/sSauerGermanyGermany173 km220 m³/s

Nearby

Rivers nearby

ReussSwitzerlandSwitzerland159 km130 m³/s13 km awayLimmatSwitzerlandSwitzerland140 km100 m³/s13 km awayThurSwitzerlandSwitzerland135 km47 m³/s28 km awayBregGermanyGermany49 km9.7 m³/s43 km awayLinthSwitzerlandSwitzerland37 km55 m³/s68 km awaySaane/SarineSwitzerlandSwitzerland126 km54 m³/s97 km awayIllFranceFrance217 km54 m³/s124 km awayIllAustriaAustria72 km210 m³/s107 km away

Where these numbers come from

Name, length, placesWikidata (Q1675) · CC0
Course, profile, basinRiverATLAS v1.0 (HydroATLAS, Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0 — followed along the river network from the point given by Wikidata
FlowWaterGAP (RiverATLAS), 1971–2000 · CC BY 4.0
Climate along the riverWorldClim (RiverATLAS), 1970–2000 · CC BY 4.0
Towns, bridges, damsWikidata · CC0; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0
Along the river© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons
Our other atlasesCascadyas, Lakeyas, Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; HydroLAKES · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST

Every source and licence is on the data sources page.

The family

Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?

Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.

beachesCoastyaFind your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit
lakesLakeyasEvery lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit
mountainsPeakyasEvery summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit
waterfallsCascadyasEvery waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit
islandsIslandyasEvery island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Coming soonVisit
riversRiveryasEvery river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.You are here
canyonsCanyonyasEvery canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Coming soonVisit