The 152-square-kilometre (59 sq mi) island makes up about 63% of the land area of Frøya Municipality.

[2] The island is rocky with heather-covered moorland as well as marshes and lakes.

The highest point on the island is Besselvassheia, at 76 metres (249 ft) above sea level.

Although Frøya is a variant of the name of the Norse goddess Freyja, the Old Norse form of the name of the island was Frøy or Frey (the ending -a in the modern form is actually the feminine definite article – so the meaning of Frøya is 'the Frøy').

Until 1906 the island and municipality name was spelled Frøien (-en is the masculine definite article in Norwegian).