It is part of the Kainuu region. The municipality has a population of 3,549
(30 June 2015) and covers an area of 1,139.09 square kilometres (439.81sqmi) of
which 220.23km (85.03sqmi)
is water. The population density is
3.86 inhabitants per square kilometre (10.0/sqmi). There are two built-up areas in the municipality: Kontiomäki and Paltamo. Kontiomäki has about 600 inhabitants.