Safien had an area, , of . Of this area, 45.6% is used for agricultural purposes, while 18.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.8% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (35.4%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains). Safien was the capital of the Safien sub-district of the Surselva district in the mid and upper Safien valley. The valley is drained by the Rabiusa river. The former municipality consists of the village of Safien-Platz (elevation: ) and scattered hamlets and single farm houses throughout the valley.