Afghanistan vs South Sudan
Afghanistan and South Sudan are almost exactly the same size.
AfghanistanSouth SudanAfghanistan moved onto South Sudan · Equal-area projection
1.01×
Afghanistan is 1.01× the area of South Sudan.
 Afghanistan |  South Sudan | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 652,230 km²#40 of 194 | 644,329 km²#41 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 6 |
| People | ||
| PopulationAfghanistan: 3.6× the population | 43,844,111#36 of 194 · 2025 | 12,188,788#81 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityAfghanistan: 3.55× the density | 67 / km²#119 of 194 | 19 / km²#170 of 194 |
| Urban populationAfghanistan: 1.19× the urban share | 26%#179 of 192 · 2025 | 22%#185 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateAfghanistan: 1.26× the births per woman | 4.76 per woman#9 of 192 · 2024 | 3.79 per woman#32 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthAfghanistan: 0.74 points higher | +2.77%#19 of 192 · 2025 | +2.03%#47 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateAfghanistan: 1.2× the birth rate | 35.0 per 1,000#9 of 192 · 2024 | 29.2 per 1,000#34 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSouth Sudan: 1.72× the death rate | 5.7 per 1,000#148 of 192 · 2024 | 9.8 per 1,000#40 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Afghanistan: 4.6 points higher | 42.6%#11 of 192 · 2025 | 38.0%#33 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65South Sudan: 0.7 points higher | 2.4%#185 of 192 · 2025 | 3.1%#166 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSouth Sudan: 2.2 per 1,000 higher | −1.7 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2025 | +0.5 per 1,000#58 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSouth Sudan: 3.21× the refugees for its size | 60.93 per 1,000#6 of 190 · 2025 | 195.79 per 1,000#1 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyAfghanistan: 8.6 years longer | 66.3 years#158 of 192 · 2024 | 57.7 years#189 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySouth Sudan: 1.49× the infant mortality | 48.3 per 1,000 births#13 of 191 · 2024 | 71.9 per 1,000 births#1 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsAfghanistan: 8.0× the doctors per person | 0.32 per 1,000#136 of 178 · 2023 | 0.04 per 1,000#177 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | 10.9%#128 of 145 · 2020 | — |
| Human Development IndexAfghanistan: 0.108 higher | 0.496#178 of 190 · 2023 | 0.388#190 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | $390#184 of 185 · 2024 | — |
| GDP | $17.78B2024 | — |
| Income group | Low income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $2,236#174 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| GDP growth | +1.9%#134 of 187 · 2024 | — |
| InflationSouth Sudan: 98.0 points higher | −6.6%#176 of 176 · 2024 | +91.4%#4 of 176 · 2024 |
| UnemploymentAfghanistan: 1.08× the unemployment | 13.4%#20 of 178 · 2025 | 12.4%#22 of 178 · 2023 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 76.5%#3 of 149 · 2016 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 44.0#19 of 149 · 2016 |
| Jobs in agricultureSouth Sudan: 12.2 points higher | 51.6% of jobs#23 of 178 · 2025 | 63.8% of jobs#11 of 178 · 2023 |
| Jobs in industryAfghanistan: 17.2 points higher | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 | 1.7% of jobs#178 of 178 · 2023 |
| Jobs in servicesSouth Sudan: 5.1 points higher | 29.5% of jobs#165 of 178 · 2025 | 34.6% of jobs#158 of 178 · 2023 |
| Foreign investment | 0.1% of GDP#158 of 184 · 2021 | — |
| Exports | 15.7% of GDP#146 of 168 · 2024 | — |
| Military spendingSouth Sudan: 1.87× the military spending | 1.8% of GDP#75 of 155 · 2021 | 3.4% of GDP#19 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet users | 16%#178 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsAfghanistan: 1.28× the mobile subscriptions | 60 per 100#176 of 191 · 2024 | 47 per 100#185 of 191 · 2023 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSouth Sudan: 5.95× the forest share | 2% of land#172 of 192 · 2024 | 11% of land#151 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per person | 0.28 t a year#164 of 185 · 2024 | — |
| Renewable energySouth Sudan: 12.4 points higher | 20.0%#107 of 190 · 2022 | 32.4%#76 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityAfghanistan: 82.4 points higher | 87.8%#143 of 192 · 2024 | 5.4%#192 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Afghanistan: 1.6× the air pollution | 37.9 µg/m³#26 of 191 · 2023 | 23.7 µg/m³#64 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landSouth Sudan: 11.8 points higher | 3.6% of land#174 of 191 · 2025 | 15.4% of land#114 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landAfghanistan: 8.2 points higher | 12.0% of land#84 of 190 · 2024 | 3.8% of land#141 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressAfghanistan: 13× the water stress | 54.8%#33 of 176 · 2022 | 4.2%#127 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSouth Sudan: 2.75× the rain and snow | 327 mm#152 of 180 · 2022 | 900 mm#97 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilitySouth Sudan: 0.52 higher | −2.04#186 of 193 · 2025 | −1.52#173 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionAfghanistan: 0.79 higher | −1.31#173 of 193 · 2025 | −2.10#193 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 4.0 per 100,000#57 of 146 · 2021 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Theocracytheocratic; the United States does not recognize the Taliban Government | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Kabul | Juba |
| Currency | Afghani (AFN) | South Sudanese pound (SSP) |
| Official languages | Arabic, Pashto, Uzbek, Turkmen, Dari, Balochi, Nuristani, Pamir, Pashayi | English |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+4:30 | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +93 | +211 |
| Region | Southern Asia, Asia | Eastern Africa, Africa |
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; South Sudan at 7° N is stretched to 1.02×. 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 South Sudan?
- Yes. Afghanistan and South Sudan are almost exactly the same size. Afghanistan covers 652,230 km² and South Sudan covers 644,329 km².
- How many times does South Sudan fit into Afghanistan?
- About 1.0 times: Afghanistan has 1.01× the area of South Sudan.
- Why do Afghanistan and South Sudan 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 South Sudan about 1.02×. 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 South Sudan?
- Afghanistan: 43,844,111 people against 12,188,788. Density: Afghanistan 67 per km², South Sudan 19 per km².
- Where do people live longer, Afghanistan or South Sudan?
- In Afghanistan: life expectancy at birth is 66.3 years, against 57.7 — 8.6 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Afghanistan and South Sudan have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Afghanistan: theocracy; South Sudan: presidential republic.