The Yangtze, in China, is the longest watercourse on the Continent and originates in the Tibetan Plateau, in an area of Asia where some of the other main rivers originate, such as the Yellow River, Mekong, Indo and Brahmaputra.Of the first 12 Asian rivers, 8 have a stretch, and in two cases the entire course, in Chinese territory; 5 instead flow in Russia.
The major streams flow into the sea, with the exception of Syr Darya and Amu Darya which are tributaries of what remains of the Aral Sea and Ural, which like the Volga, a European river, ends its 'journey' in the Caspian Sea; three tributaries also belong to this ranking.
| River | Length (km) | Length (mi) | Mouth | Countries |
| Yangtze (1) | 6,300 km | 3,915 mi | East China Sea | China |
| Yenisey (2) | 5,539 km | 3,442 mi | Kara Sea | Mongolia, Russia |
| Yellow River (Huang He) |
5,464 km | 3,395 mi | Bohai Sea | China |
| Ob-Irtysh (3) | 5,410 km | 3,362 mi | Kara Sea | China, Kazakhstan, Russia |
| Amur (4) | 4,444 km | 2,761 mi | Sea of Okhotsk | China, Russia |
| Mekong | 4,350 km | 2,703 mi | South China Sea | China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam |
| Lena | 4,337 km | 2,695 mi | Laptev Sea | Russia |
| Indus | 3,200 km | 1,988 mi | Arabian Sea | China, India, Pakistan |
| Syr Darya (5) | 3,026 km | 1,880 mi | Aral Sea | Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan |
| Nizhnyaya Tunguska | 2,989 km | 1,857 mi | Yenisey | Russia |
| Brahmaputra | 2,900 km | 1,802 mi | Bay of Bengal | China, India, Bangladesh |
| Salween | 2,815 km | 1,749 mi | Andaman Sea | China, Myanmar, Thailand |
| Euphrates (6) | 2,800 km | 1,740 mi | Persian Gulf | Turkey, Syria, Iraq |
| Vilyuy | 2,650 km | 1,647 mi | Lena | Russia |
| Amu Darya (7) | 2,540 km | 1,578 mi | Aral Sea | Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan |
| Ganges | 2,480 km | 1,541 mi | Bay of Bengal | India, Bangladesh |
| Ishim | 2,450 km | 1,522 mi | Irtysh | Kazakhstan, Russia |
| Ural (8) | 2,428 km | 1,509 mi | Caspian Sea | Russia, Kazakhstan |
* in some cases the course of the main tributary is included either because the length is greater or because the river does not always have the same name or it arises from the confluence of other rivers, which are in effect the initial part of the same river
(1) Third longest river on the planet.
(2) Including Selenga and Angara as primary branches, otherwise the length is 4,167 km (2,589 mi).
(3) The Ob has a course of 3,676 km (2,284 mi), the length include its major tributary, the Irtysh (4,248 km - 2,640 mi).
(4) It arises from the confluence of Shilka and Argun, the latter considered as the main branch.
(5) It arises from the confluence of Kara Darya and Naryn, the latter included in the measurement.
(6) It joins the Tigris, the other river that forms Mesopotamia, 190 km before its mouth.
(7) Due to the excessive withdrawal of its waters it does not reach the Aral in minimum flow periods.
(8) Its course marks part of the border between Asia and Europe.