Afghanistan vs Chile
Chile is 16% larger than Afghanistan.
AfghanistanChileAfghanistan moved onto Chile · Equal-area projection
0.86×
Afghanistan is 0.86× the area of Chile. Put the other way, Chile is 1.16× the size of Afghanistan.
 Afghanistan |  Chile | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaChile: 1.16× the area | 652,230 km²#40 of 194 | 756,102 km²#37 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationAfghanistan: 2.21× the population | 43,844,111#36 of 194 · 2025 | 19,859,921#66 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityAfghanistan: 2.56× the density | 67 / km²#119 of 194 | 26 / km²#159 of 194 |
| Urban populationChile: 3.44× the urban share | 26%#179 of 192 · 2025 | 89%#21 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateAfghanistan: 4.18× the births per woman | 4.76 per woman#9 of 192 · 2024 | 1.14 per woman#183 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthAfghanistan: 2.29 points higher | +2.77%#19 of 192 · 2025 | +0.48%#127 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateAfghanistan: 4.02× the birth rate | 35.0 per 1,000#9 of 192 · 2024 | 8.7 per 1,000#159 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateChile: 1.16× the death rate | 5.7 per 1,000#148 of 192 · 2024 | 6.6 per 1,000#117 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Afghanistan: 26.1 points higher | 42.6%#11 of 192 · 2025 | 16.5%#146 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Chile: 12.2 points higher | 2.4%#185 of 192 · 2025 | 14.6%#57 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationChile: 4.3 per 1,000 higher | −1.7 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2025 | +2.6 per 1,000#33 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadAfghanistan: 226× the refugees for its size | 60.93 per 1,000#6 of 190 · 2025 | 0.27 per 1,000#90 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyChile: 15.1 years longer | 66.3 years#158 of 192 · 2024 | 81.4 years#34 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityAfghanistan: 8.33× the infant mortality | 48.3 per 1,000 births#13 of 191 · 2024 | 5.8 per 1,000 births#138 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsChile: 10.4× the doctors per person | 0.32 per 1,000#136 of 178 · 2023 | 3.33 per 1,000#52 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolmentChile: 10.1× the university enrolment | 10.9%#128 of 145 · 2020 | 110.2%#5 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexChile: 0.382 higher | 0.496#178 of 190 · 2023 | 0.878#44 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaChile: 43.5× the income per person | $390#184 of 185 · 2024 | $16,960#61 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPChile: 20.1× the economy | $17.78B2024 | $357.37B2025 |
| Income group | Low income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Chile: 16.9× the output per person | $2,236#174 of 184 · 2024 | $37,774#57 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthChile: 0.6 points higher | +1.9%#134 of 187 · 2024 | +2.5%#118 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationChile: 10.8 points higher | −6.6%#176 of 176 · 2024 | +4.2%#51 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentAfghanistan: 1.49× the unemployment | 13.4%#20 of 178 · 2025 | 9.0%#41 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 0.4%#107 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 43.0#24 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureAfghanistan: 45.5 points higher | 51.6% of jobs#23 of 178 · 2025 | 6.1% of jobs#126 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryChile: 2.6 points higher | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 | 21.5% of jobs#67 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesChile: 42.9 points higher | 29.5% of jobs#165 of 178 · 2025 | 72.4% of jobs#42 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentChile: 4.0 points higher | 0.1% of GDP#158 of 184 · 2021 | 4.1% of GDP#48 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsChile: 18.9 points higher | 15.7% of GDP#146 of 168 · 2024 | 34.6% of GDP#88 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingAfghanistan: 1.2× the military spending | 1.8% of GDP#75 of 155 · 2021 | 1.5% of GDP#87 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersChile: 5.94× the share online | 16%#178 of 184 · 2024 | 96%#23 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsChile: 2.22× the mobile subscriptions | 60 per 100#176 of 191 · 2024 | 133 per 100#45 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaChile: 12.9× the forest share | 2% of land#172 of 192 · 2024 | 25% of land#110 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personChile: 14.1× the CO₂ per person | 0.28 t a year#164 of 185 · 2024 | 3.94 t a year#65 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyChile: 4.2 points higher | 20.0%#107 of 190 · 2022 | 24.2%#94 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityChile: 11.2 points higher | 87.8%#143 of 192 · 2024 | 99.0%#112 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Afghanistan: 1.64× the air pollution | 37.9 µg/m³#26 of 191 · 2023 | 23.1 µg/m³#67 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landChile: 18.0 points higher | 3.6% of land#174 of 191 · 2025 | 21.6% of land#73 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landAfghanistan: 10.1 points higher | 12.0% of land#84 of 190 · 2024 | 1.9% of land#163 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressAfghanistan: 6.09× the water stress | 54.8%#33 of 176 · 2022 | 9.0%#93 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationChile: 4.65× the rain and snow | 327 mm#152 of 180 · 2022 | 1,522 mm#56 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityChile: 2.21 higher | −2.04#186 of 193 · 2025 | +0.17#89 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionChile: 2.41 higher | −1.31#173 of 193 · 2025 | +1.10#31 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateChile: 1.57× the homicide rate | 4.0 per 100,000#57 of 146 · 2021 | 6.3 per 100,000#43 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Theocracytheocratic; the United States does not recognize the Taliban Government | Presidential republic |
| Member of | — | OECD |
| Capital | Kabul | Santiago |
| Currency | Afghani (AFN) | Chilean peso (CLP) |
| Official languages | Arabic, Pashto, Uzbek, Turkmen, Dari, Balochi, Nuristani, Pamir, Pashayi | Spanish |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+4:30 | UTC−4, summer time UTC−3 · UTC−6 to UTC−3, 3 time zones |
| Calling code | +93 | +56 |
| Region | Southern Asia, Asia | South America |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Afghanistan sits at about 34° N and is stretched to 1.45× its true area; Chile at 36° S is stretched to 1.53×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Afghanistan bigger than Chile?
- No. Afghanistan is 14% smaller than Chile. Afghanistan covers 652,230 km² and Chile covers 756,102 km².
- How many times does Afghanistan fit into Chile?
- About 1.2 times: Chile has 1.16× the area of Afghanistan.
- Why do Afghanistan and Chile look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Afghanistan is drawn about 1.45× its true area there and Chile about 1.53×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Afghanistan or Chile?
- Afghanistan: 43,844,111 people against 19,859,921. Density: Afghanistan 67 per km², Chile 26 per km².
- Which is richer, Afghanistan or Chile?
- By gross national income per person, Chile: $16,960 against $390 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2024) — 43.5× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Afghanistan or Chile?
- In Chile: life expectancy at birth is 81.4 years, against 66.3 — 15.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Afghanistan and Chile have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Afghanistan: theocracy; Chile: presidential republic.