Afghanistan vs France
Afghanistan and France are almost exactly the same size.
AfghanistanFranceAfghanistan moved onto France · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
1.01×
Afghanistan is 1.01× the area of France.
 Afghanistan |  France | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 652,230 km²#40 of 194 | 643,801 km²#42 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 10 |
| People | ||
| PopulationFrance: 1.57× the population | 43,844,111#36 of 194 · 2025 | 68,720,337#23 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityFrance: 1.59× the density | 67 / km²#119 of 194 | 107 / km²#83 of 194 |
| Urban populationFrance: 3.04× the urban share | 26%#179 of 192 · 2025 | 79%#49 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateAfghanistan: 2.96× the births per woman | 4.76 per woman#9 of 192 · 2024 | 1.61 per woman#123 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthAfghanistan: 2.52 points higher | +2.77%#19 of 192 · 2025 | +0.25%#147 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateAfghanistan: 3.61× the birth rate | 35.0 per 1,000#9 of 192 · 2024 | 9.7 per 1,000#147 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateFrance: 1.65× the death rate | 5.7 per 1,000#148 of 192 · 2024 | 9.4 per 1,000#48 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Afghanistan: 26.4 points higher | 42.6%#11 of 192 · 2025 | 16.2%#148 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65France: 20.1 points higher | 2.4%#185 of 192 · 2025 | 22.5%#12 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationFrance: 3.0 per 1,000 higher | −1.7 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2025 | +1.3 per 1,000#44 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroad | 60.93 per 1,000#6 of 190 · 2025 | 0.00 per 1,000#174 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyFrance: 16.7 years longer | 66.3 years#158 of 192 · 2024 | 83.0 years#18 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityAfghanistan: 14.2× the infant mortality | 48.3 per 1,000 births#13 of 191 · 2024 | 3.4 per 1,000 births#159 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsFrance: 10.3× the doctors per person | 0.32 per 1,000#136 of 178 · 2023 | 3.28 per 1,000#54 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentFrance: 6.56× the university enrolment | 10.9%#128 of 145 · 2020 | 71.5%#43 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexFrance: 0.424 higher | 0.496#178 of 190 · 2023 | 0.920#25 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaFrance: 125× the income per person | $390#184 of 185 · 2024 | $48,630#23 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPFrance: 189× the economy | $17.78B2024 | $3.37T2025 |
| Income group | Low income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)France: 28.6× the output per person | $2,236#174 of 184 · 2024 | $63,975#28 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthAfghanistan: 1.1 points higher | +1.9%#134 of 187 · 2024 | +0.8%#160 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationFrance: 7.5 points higher | −6.6%#176 of 176 · 2024 | +0.9%#144 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentAfghanistan: 1.79× the unemployment | 13.4%#20 of 178 · 2025 | 7.5%#53 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 0.1%#126 of 149 · 2023 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 31.8#104 of 149 · 2023 |
| Jobs in agricultureAfghanistan: 49.3 points higher | 51.6% of jobs#23 of 178 · 2025 | 2.3% of jobs#154 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryFrance: 0.4 points higher | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 | 19.3% of jobs#85 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesFrance: 48.8 points higher | 29.5% of jobs#165 of 178 · 2025 | 78.3% of jobs#20 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentFrance: 1.7 points higher | 0.1% of GDP#158 of 184 · 2021 | 1.8% of GDP#100 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsFrance: 17.7 points higher | 15.7% of GDP#146 of 168 · 2024 | 33.4% of GDP#89 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingFrance: 1.11× the military spending | 1.8% of GDP#75 of 155 · 2021 | 2.0% of GDP#59 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersFrance: 5.51× the share online | 16%#178 of 184 · 2024 | 89%#64 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsFrance: 1.95× the mobile subscriptions | 60 per 100#176 of 191 · 2024 | 117 per 100#91 of 191 · 2023 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaFrance: 17.3× the forest share | 2% of land#172 of 192 · 2024 | 33% of land#96 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personFrance: 14.3× the CO₂ per person | 0.28 t a year#164 of 185 · 2024 | 4.00 t a year#61 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyAfghanistan: 3.8 points higher | 20.0%#107 of 190 · 2022 | 16.2%#118 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityFrance: 12.2 points higher | 87.8%#143 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Afghanistan: 4.62× the air pollution | 37.9 µg/m³#26 of 191 · 2023 | 8.2 µg/m³#168 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landFrance: 25.2 points higher | 3.6% of land#174 of 191 · 2025 | 28.8% of land#40 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landFrance: 19.3 points higher | 12.0% of land#84 of 190 · 2024 | 31.3% of land#26 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressAfghanistan: 2.56× the water stress | 54.8%#33 of 176 · 2022 | 21.4%#66 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationFrance: 2.65× the rain and snow | 327 mm#152 of 180 · 2022 | 867 mm#99 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityFrance: 1.95 higher | −2.04#186 of 193 · 2025 | −0.09#110 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionFrance: 2.55 higher | −1.31#173 of 193 · 2025 | +1.24#23 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateAfghanistan: 3.08× the homicide rate | 4.0 per 100,000#57 of 146 · 2021 | 1.3 per 100,000#92 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Theocracytheocratic; the United States does not recognize the Taliban Government | Semi-presidential republic |
| Member of | — | EU, NATO, Euro area, Schengen Area, OECD, G7, G20 |
| Capital | Kabul | Paris |
| Currency | Afghani (AFN) | Euro (EUR), CFP Franc (XPF) |
| Official languages | Arabic, Pashto, Uzbek, Turkmen, Dari, Balochi, Nuristani, Pamir, Pashayi | French |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+4:30 | UTC+1, summer time UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +93 | +33 |
| Region | Southern Asia, Asia | Western Europe, Europe |
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; France at 43° N is stretched to 1.87×. 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 France?
- Yes. Afghanistan and France are almost exactly the same size. Afghanistan covers 652,230 km² and France covers 643,801 km².
- How many times does France fit into Afghanistan?
- About 1.0 times: Afghanistan has 1.01× the area of France.
- Why do Afghanistan and France 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 France about 1.87×. 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 France?
- France: 68,720,337 people against 43,844,111. Density: Afghanistan 67 per km², France 107 per km².
- Which is richer, Afghanistan or France?
- By gross national income per person, France: $48,630 against $390 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2024) — 125× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Afghanistan or France?
- In France: life expectancy at birth is 83.0 years, against 66.3 — 16.7 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Afghanistan and France have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Afghanistan: theocracy; France: semi-presidential republic.