Tunisia at its true size
Tunisia covers 163,610 km², number 90 of 194 countries by area. Home to 12,348,573 people (2025). Sitting near the equator, it is one of the few places Mercator gets almost right.
Equal-area projection · Natural Earth 50m
| Area | 163,610 km² Wikidata |
|---|---|
| Population | 12,348,573 World Bank, 2025 |
| Density | 75 per km² |
| Capital | Tunis |
| Local time in Tunis | |
| Time zone | UTC+1 IANA |
| Currency | Tunisian dinar (TND) Wikidata |
| Languages | Arabic |
| Traffic | On the right |
| Region | Northern Africa, Africa |
| Status | Independent state |
| Coast | Has a coastline |
| Calling code | +216 |
| Codes | TN · TUN · 788 |
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Where Tunisia ranks
Among the independent states, in 44 rankings. Each links to its table.
People
- Population#80 of 19412 million people#31 of 54 in Africa
- Population density#109 of 19475 people per km²#24 of 54 in Africa
- Urban population#70 of 19271% urban#8 of 54 in Africa
- Fertility rate#105 of 1921.82 births per woman#52 of 54 in Africa
- Population growth#123 of 192+0.58% a year#52 of 54 in Africa
- Birth rate#102 of 19213.4 births per 1,000 people#51 of 54 in Africa
- Death rate#137 of 1926.1 deaths per 1,000 people#39 of 54 in Africa
- Children under 15#101 of 19223.6% under 15#52 of 54 in Africa
- People over 65#80 of 1929.9% aged 65 and over#2 of 54 in Africa
- Net migration#122 of 192−1.2 per 1,000 people#35 of 54 in Africa
- Refugees abroad#88 of 1900.30 refugees abroad per 1,000 people#33 of 54 in Africa
Health & education
- Life expectancy#68 of 19276.7 years#1 of 54 in Africa
- Infant mortality#112 of 1919.7 infant deaths per 1,000 live births#52 of 54 in Africa
- Doctors#99 of 1781.32 doctors per 1,000 people#4 of 51 in Africa
- University enrolment#92 of 14538.1% gross enrolment#4 of 29 in Africa
- Human Development Index#104 of 190an index of 0.746#5 of 54 in Africa
Economy
- GNI per capita#124 of 185$4,300 a person#12 of 52 in Africa
- Internet users#107 of 18477% online#6 of 52 in Africa
- GDP per capita (PPP)#108 of 184$15,233 a person#10 of 52 in Africa
- GDP growth#118 of 187+2.5% a year#43 of 52 in Africa
- Inflation#40 of 176+5.2% a year#18 of 50 in Africa
- Unemployment#15 of 17815.1% of the labour force#11 of 53 in Africa
- Extreme poverty#98 of 1490.7% under $3.00 a day#45 of 47 in Africa
- Income inequality (Gini)#84 of 149a Gini index of 33.7#39 of 47 in Africa
- Jobs in agriculture#100 of 17812.5% of jobs#46 of 53 in Africa
- Jobs in industry#8 of 17833.3% of jobs#1 of 53 in Africa
- Jobs in services#101 of 17854.3% of jobs#11 of 53 in Africa
- Foreign investment#92 of 1842.0% of GDP#25 of 52 in Africa
- Exports#52 of 16846.7% of GDP#9 of 49 in Africa
- Military spending#41 of 1552.5% of GDP#12 of 50 in Africa
- Mobile subscriptions#87 of 191118 subscriptions per 100 people#16 of 54 in Africa
Energy & environment
- CO₂ per person#90 of 1852.62 tonnes a person#7 of 53 in Africa
- Forest area#167 of 1924% forest#46 of 54 in Africa
- Renewable energy#136 of 19011.6% renewable#46 of 54 in Africa
- Access to electricity#1 of 192100.0% with electricity#1 of 54 in Africa
- Air pollution (PM2.5)#91 of 19118.9 µg/m³#39 of 54 in Africa
- Protected land#152 of 1917.9% of the land protected#40 of 54 in Africa
- Arable land#60 of 19017.8% of the land arable#18 of 54 in Africa
- Water stress#18 of 17698.1% of its available fresh water#5 of 53 in Africa
- Precipitation#165 of 180207 mm a year#49 of 54 in Africa
Governance & safety
Countries of a similar size
Every country within 25% of Tunisia’s area, lit up on the map →
- Suriname1.0×Tunisia and Suriname are almost exactly the same size.
- Uruguay0.93×Tunisia is 7% smaller than Uruguay.
- Cambodia0.9×Tunisia is 10% smaller than Cambodia.
- Bangladesh1.11×Tunisia is 11% larger than Bangladesh.
- Nepal1.11×Tunisia is 11% larger than Nepal.
- Syria0.88×Tunisia is 12% smaller than Syria.
How many times does Tunisia fit into…
- Russia: about 104 times
- Canada: about 61 times
- United States: about 60 times
The land itself
Rivers, summits and lakes Tunisia shares with the rest of the world. Turn on “Rivers & lakes” and “Physical names” in the atlas to see them on the map.
Summits
- Jebel ech Chambi1,544 m
Rivers are listed by the published length of their whole course, not the part inside Tunisia. Figures from Wikidata, features from Natural Earth.
Neighbours
Questions about Tunisia
- How big is Tunisia?
- Tunisia covers 163,610 km², which makes it number 90 of 194 countries by area. About 12,348,573 people live there (2025), 75 per km².
- Is Tunisia bigger than Suriname?
- Tunisia and Suriname are almost exactly the same size. Tunisia: 163,610 km²; Suriname: 163,270 km².
- How much does the Mercator map distort Tunisia?
- Tunisia lies close to the equator, so Mercator draws it at nearly its true size. It is the countries far from the equator that Mercator inflates.
- Which countries border Tunisia?
- Tunisia shares a land border with Algeria, Libya.