Albania vs Lesotho
Lesotho is 6% larger than Albania.
AlbaniaLesothoAlbania moved onto Lesotho · Equal-area projection
0.95×
Albania is 0.95× the area of Lesotho. Put the other way, Lesotho is 1.06× the size of Albania.
 Albania |  Lesotho | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaLesotho: 1.06× the area | 28,748 km²#140 of 194 | 30,355 km²#138 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 3 | 1 |
| People | ||
| PopulationAbout the same population | 2,349,580#144 of 194 · 2025 | 2,363,325#142 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityAlbania: 1.05× the density | 82 / km²#101 of 194 | 78 / km²#107 of 194 |
| Urban populationAlbania: 1.32× the urban share | 59%#112 of 192 · 2025 | 45%#139 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateLesotho: 1.99× the births per woman | 1.34 per woman#167 of 192 · 2024 | 2.66 per woman#64 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthLesotho: 2.27 points higher | −1.17%#190 of 192 · 2025 | +1.10%#92 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateLesotho: 2.36× the birth rate | 10.1 per 1,000#138 of 192 · 2024 | 23.8 per 1,000#55 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateLesotho: 1.24× the death rate | 8.5 per 1,000#63 of 192 · 2024 | 10.5 per 1,000#28 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Lesotho: 17.5 points higher | 16.6%#145 of 192 · 2025 | 34.1%#53 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Albania: 13.7 points higher | 17.6%#43 of 192 · 2025 | 3.9%#144 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationLesotho: 8.1 per 1,000 higher | −10.3 per 1,000#184 of 192 · 2025 | −2.2 per 1,000#147 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadAlbania: 913× the refugees for its size | 9.13 per 1,000#19 of 190 · 2025 | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyAlbania: 22.0 years longer | 79.8 years#42 of 192 · 2024 | 57.8 years#188 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityLesotho: 6.78× the infant mortality | 8.3 per 1,000 births#120 of 191 · 2024 | 56.3 per 1,000 births#10 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsAlbania: 7.83× the doctors per person | 1.88 per 1,000#85 of 178 · 2020 | 0.24 per 1,000#143 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | 84.1%#16 of 145 · 2024 | — |
| Human Development IndexAlbania: 0.260 higher | 0.810#70 of 190 · 2023 | 0.550#164 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaAlbania: 9.42× the income per person | $12,060#74 of 185 · 2025 | $1,280#162 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPAlbania: 11.9× the economy | $30.54B2025 | $2.57B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Albania: 8.86× the output per person | $28,221#73 of 184 · 2025 | $3,184#169 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthAlbania: 1.8 points higher | +3.8%#75 of 187 · 2025 | +2.0%#132 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationLesotho: 2.2 points higher | +2.1%#116 of 176 · 2025 | +4.3%#50 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentLesotho: 1.5× the unemployment | 10.9%#31 of 178 · 2025 | 16.3%#13 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyLesotho: 140× the share in extreme poverty | 0.3%#116 of 149 · 2020 | 41.9%#16 of 149 · 2017 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Lesotho: 15.5 higher | 29.4#124 of 149 · 2020 | 44.9#16 of 149 · 2017 |
| Jobs in agricultureLesotho: 0.1 points higher | 30.8% of jobs#58 of 178 · 2025 | 30.9% of jobs#57 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryLesotho: 11.0 points higher | 22.0% of jobs#64 of 178 · 2025 | 33.0% of jobs#9 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesAlbania: 11.1 points higher | 47.2% of jobs#130 of 178 · 2025 | 36.1% of jobs#155 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentAlbania: 4.8 points higher | 6.1% of GDP#31 of 184 · 2025 | 1.3% of GDP#117 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsLesotho: 12.5 points higher | 37.0% of GDP#80 of 168 · 2025 | 49.5% of GDP#47 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingAlbania: 1.25× the military spending | 2.0% of GDP#59 of 155 · 2025 | 1.6% of GDP#80 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersAlbania: 1.66× the share online | 86%#75 of 184 · 2024 | 52%#143 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsAlbania: 1.27× the mobile subscriptions | 89 per 100#142 of 191 · 2024 | 70 per 100#161 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaAlbania: 31.2× the forest share | 34% of land#88 of 192 · 2024 | 1% of land#178 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personAlbania: 4.16× the CO₂ per person | 1.79 t a year#108 of 185 · 2024 | 0.43 t a year#153 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyAlbania: 7.0 points higher | 41.9%#57 of 190 · 2021 | 34.9%#69 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityAlbania: 39.4 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 60.6%#164 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Lesotho: 1.7× the air pollution | 15.5 µg/m³#113 of 191 · 2023 | 26.4 µg/m³#58 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landAlbania: 0.2 points higher | 23.6% of land#54 of 191 · 2025 | 23.4% of land#56 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landAlbania: 2.5 points higher | 21.5% of land#51 of 190 · 2024 | 19.0% of land#57 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressAlbania: 1.85× the water stress | 4.8%#120 of 176 · 2022 | 2.6%#141 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationAlbania: 1.88× the rain and snow | 1,485 mm#60 of 180 · 2022 | 788 mm#106 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityAlbania: 0.10 higher | +0.09#98 of 193 · 2025 | −0.01#105 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionLesotho: 0.03 higher | −0.30#102 of 193 · 2025 | −0.27#97 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 1.4 per 100,000#90 of 146 · 2023 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republic | Constitutional monarchyparliamentary constitutional monarchy |
| Member of | NATO | — |
| Capital | Tirane | Maseru |
| Currency | Albanian lek (ALL) | South African rand (ZAR), Loti (LSL) |
| Official languages | Albanian | English, Sesotho |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+1, summer time UTC+2 | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +355 | +266 |
| Region | Southern Europe, Europe | Southern 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. Albania sits at about 41° N and is stretched to 1.76× its true area; Lesotho at 30° S is stretched to 1.32×. 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 Albania bigger than Lesotho?
- No. Albania is 5% smaller than Lesotho. Albania covers 28,748 km² and Lesotho covers 30,355 km².
- How many times does Albania fit into Lesotho?
- About 1.1 times: Lesotho has 1.06× the area of Albania.
- Why do Albania and Lesotho look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Albania is drawn about 1.76× its true area there and Lesotho about 1.32×. 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, Albania or Lesotho?
- Lesotho: 2,363,325 people against 2,349,580. Density: Albania 82 per km², Lesotho 78 per km².
- Which is richer, Albania or Lesotho?
- By gross national income per person, Albania: $12,060 against $1,280 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 9.42× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Albania or Lesotho?
- In Albania: life expectancy at birth is 79.8 years, against 57.8 — 22.0 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Albania and Lesotho have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Albania: parliamentary republic; Lesotho: constitutional monarchy.