Zimbabwe at its true size
Zimbabwe covers 390,757 km², number 60 of 194 countries by area. Home to 16,950,795 people (2025). Sitting near the equator, it is one of the few places Mercator gets almost right.
Equal-area projection · Natural Earth 50m
| Area | 390,757 km² Wikidata |
|---|---|
| Population | 16,950,795 World Bank, 2025 |
| Density | 43 per km² |
| Capital | Harare |
| Local time in Harare | |
| Time zone | UTC+2 IANA |
| Currency | Zimbabwe ZiG (ZWG), United States dollar (USD) Wikidata |
| Languages | English, Xhosa, Sesotho, Tswana, Chewa, Shona, Tsonga, Venda, Khoisan, Northern Ndebele, Tonga, Kalanga, Nambya, Ndau, Zimbabwe Sign Language, Barwe |
| Traffic | On the left |
| Region | Eastern Africa, Africa |
| Status | Independent state |
| Coast | Landlocked |
| Calling code | +263 |
| Codes | ZW · ZWE · 716 |
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Where Zimbabwe ranks
Among the independent states, in 44 rankings. Each links to its table.
People
- Population#74 of 19417 million people#26 of 54 in Africa
- Population density#142 of 19443 people per km²#37 of 54 in Africa
- Urban population#148 of 19241% urban#34 of 54 in Africa
- Fertility rate#37 of 1923.67 births per woman#34 of 54 in Africa
- Population growth#52 of 192+1.88% a year#39 of 54 in Africa
- Birth rate#31 of 19229.9 births per 1,000 people#29 of 54 in Africa
- Death rate#86 of 1927.5 deaths per 1,000 people#21 of 54 in Africa
- Children under 15#23 of 19240.3% under 15#21 of 54 in Africa
- People over 65#150 of 1923.6% aged 65 and over#22 of 54 in Africa
- Net migration#162 of 192−3.2 per 1,000 people#52 of 54 in Africa
- Refugees abroad#80 of 1900.39 refugees abroad per 1,000 people#30 of 54 in Africa
Health & education
- Life expectancy#175 of 19263.1 years#38 of 54 in Africa
- Infant mortality#6 of 19162.4 infant deaths per 1,000 live births#6 of 54 in Africa
- Doctors#161 of 1780.14 doctors per 1,000 people#36 of 51 in Africa
- University enrolment#136 of 1457.7% gross enrolment#22 of 29 in Africa
- Human Development Index#150 of 190an index of 0.598#21 of 54 in Africa
Economy
- GNI per capita#142 of 185$2,660 a person#19 of 52 in Africa
- Internet users#151 of 18442% online#24 of 52 in Africa
- GDP per capita (PPP)#143 of 184$6,470 a person#23 of 52 in Africa
- GDP growth#9 of 187+8.1% a year#4 of 52 in Africa
- Inflation#3 of 176+104.7% a year#2 of 50 in Africa
- Unemployment#38 of 1789.3% of the labour force#18 of 53 in Africa
- Extreme poverty#12 of 14949.2% under $3.00 a day#12 of 47 in Africa
- Income inequality (Gini)#8 of 149a Gini index of 50.3#7 of 47 in Africa
- Jobs in agriculture#19 of 17854.3% of jobs#18 of 53 in Africa
- Jobs in industry#151 of 17811.5% of jobs#34 of 53 in Africa
- Jobs in services#159 of 17834.2% of jobs#38 of 53 in Africa
- Foreign investment#96 of 1841.9% of GDP#28 of 52 in Africa
- Exports#139 of 16818.1% of GDP#37 of 49 in Africa
- Military spending#139 of 1550.6% of GDP#46 of 50 in Africa
- Mobile subscriptions#137 of 19194 subscriptions per 100 people#29 of 54 in Africa
Energy & environment
- CO₂ per person#136 of 1850.77 tonnes a person#17 of 53 in Africa
- Forest area#81 of 19236% forest#15 of 54 in Africa
- Renewable energy#13 of 19082.4% renewable#12 of 54 in Africa
- Access to electricity#161 of 19262.0% with electricity#26 of 54 in Africa
- Air pollution (PM2.5)#118 of 19115.0 µg/m³#47 of 54 in Africa
- Protected land#42 of 19128.3% of the land protected#11 of 54 in Africa
- Arable land#97 of 19010.4% of the land arable#29 of 54 in Africa
- Water stress#40 of 17646.1% of its available fresh water#10 of 53 in Africa
- Precipitation#119 of 180657 mm a year#36 of 54 in Africa
Governance & safety
Countries of a similar size
Every country within 25% of Zimbabwe’s area, lit up on the map →
- Norway1.01×Zimbabwe and Norway are almost exactly the same size.
- Japan1.03×Zimbabwe is 3% larger than Japan.
- Paraguay0.96×Zimbabwe is 4% smaller than Paraguay.
- Germany1.09×Zimbabwe is 9% larger than Germany.
- Iraq0.89×Zimbabwe is 11% smaller than Iraq.
- Philippines1.14×Zimbabwe is 14% larger than Philippines.
How many times does Zimbabwe fit into…
- Russia: about 44 times
- Canada: about 26 times
- United States: about 25 times
The land itself
Rivers, summits and lakes Zimbabwe shares with the rest of the world. Turn on “Rivers & lakes” and “Physical names” in the atlas to see them on the map.
Rivers
- Zambezi2,574 km
- Limpopo1,750 km
Summits
- Mount Nyangani2,592 m
Lakes
- Lake Kariba5,400 km²
Rivers are listed by the published length of their whole course, not the part inside Zimbabwe. Figures from Wikidata, features from Natural Earth.
Neighbours
Questions about Zimbabwe
- How big is Zimbabwe?
- Zimbabwe covers 390,757 km², which makes it number 60 of 194 countries by area. About 16,950,795 people live there (2025), 43 per km².
- Is Zimbabwe bigger than Norway?
- Zimbabwe and Norway are almost exactly the same size. Zimbabwe: 390,757 km²; Norway: 385,207 km².
- How much does the Mercator map distort Zimbabwe?
- Zimbabwe 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 Zimbabwe?
- Zimbabwe shares a land border with South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia, Botswana.