The Zakarpattia Oblast has a total area of 12,800 km2 (4,942 sq mi) and is located in the Carpathian Mountains region of western Ukraine.[6] It is the only Ukrainian oblast to have boundaries with four countries: Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania. On the West it borders the Prešov and Košice Regions of Slovakia and Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg Counties of Hungary, on the South—the Satu Mare and Maramures Counties of Romania, on the East and Northeast—Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, and on the North—Lviv Oblast and the Subcarpathian Voivodeship of Poland.
The forest-covered mountainous landscape within the oblast.

The Zakarpattia Oblast mostly consists of mountains and small hills covered with deciduous and coniferous forests, as well as alpine meadows. Mountains cover about 80% of the oblast's area, and cross from North-East to South-East. The Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians, part of which are located within Zakarpattia Oblast, were recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007.

The largest rivers that flow through the oblast include the Tysa, Borzhava, and the Tereblia. The region's climate is moderate and continental with about 700–1,000 mm (28–39 in) of rainfall per year. The average temperature in summer is +21°С (70°F) and −4°С (25°F) in winter. With a total height of 2,061 metres (6,762 ft), Hoverla, part of the Chornohora mountain range, is the tallest point in the oblast. The lowest point, 101 m (331 ft) above sea level, is located in the village of Ruski Heyevtsi (Oroszgejoc in Hungarian) in the Uzhhorodskyi Raion.