Algeria vs Mauritania
Algeria is 2.31 times larger than Mauritania. Mauritania would fit into Algeria about 2.3 times.
AlgeriaMauritaniaAlgeria moved onto Mauritania · Equal-area projection
2.31×
Algeria is 2.31× the area of Mauritania.
 Algeria |  Mauritania | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAlgeria: 2.31× the area | 2,381,741 km²#10 of 194 | 1,030,700 km²#28 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 7 | 4 |
| People | ||
| PopulationAlgeria: 8.92× the population | 47,435,312#33 of 194 · 2025 | 5,315,065#124 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityAlgeria: 3.86× the density | 20 / km²#166 of 194 | 5.2 / km²#185 of 194 |
| Urban populationAlgeria: 1.23× the urban share | 76%#55 of 192 · 2025 | 62%#102 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateMauritania: 1.7× the births per woman | 2.72 per woman#60 of 192 · 2024 | 4.63 per woman#11 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthMauritania: 1.46 points higher | +1.32%#74 of 192 · 2025 | +2.78%#18 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateMauritania: 1.81× the birth rate | 18.8 per 1,000#79 of 192 · 2024 | 34.0 per 1,000#13 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateMauritania: 1.17× the death rate | 4.6 per 1,000#179 of 192 · 2024 | 5.4 per 1,000#161 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Mauritania: 12.5 points higher | 29.9%#69 of 192 · 2025 | 42.4%#12 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Algeria: 3.6 points higher | 6.8%#104 of 192 · 2025 | 3.2%#161 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationAlgeria: 0.3 per 1,000 higher | −0.6 per 1,000#109 of 192 · 2025 | −0.9 per 1,000#114 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadMauritania: 43.5× the refugees for its size | 0.19 per 1,000#105 of 190 · 2025 | 8.26 per 1,000#22 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyAlgeria: 7.8 years longer | 76.5 years#72 of 192 · 2024 | 68.7 years#139 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityMauritania: 1.55× the infant mortality | 19.5 per 1,000 births#70 of 191 · 2024 | 30.2 per 1,000 births#47 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsAlgeria: 6.38× the doctors per person | 1.66 per 1,000#90 of 178 · 2022 | 0.26 per 1,000#141 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentAlgeria: 9.07× the university enrolment | 54.4%#68 of 145 · 2024 | 6.0%#140 of 145 · 2020 |
| Human Development IndexAlgeria: 0.200 higher | 0.763#95 of 190 · 2023 | 0.563#160 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaAlgeria: 2.65× the income per person | $5,850#106 of 185 · 2025 | $2,210#145 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPAlgeria: 24.6× the economy | $287.03B2025 | $11.68B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Algeria: 2.42× the output per person | $18,586#99 of 184 · 2025 | $7,676#139 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthMauritania: 0.2 points higher | +3.8%#75 of 187 · 2025 | +4.0%#69 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationMauritania: 0.1 points higher | +1.4%#133 of 176 · 2025 | +1.5%#128 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentAlgeria: 1.13× the unemployment | 11.6%#27 of 178 · 2025 | 10.3%#34 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 10.2%#45 of 149 · 2019 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 32.0#103 of 149 · 2019 |
| Jobs in agricultureMauritania: 22.6 points higher | 9.5% of jobs#110 of 178 · 2025 | 32.1% of jobs#55 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryAlgeria: 17.3 points higher | 32.3% of jobs#11 of 178 · 2025 | 15.0% of jobs#137 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesAlgeria: 5.5 points higher | 58.3% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 | 52.8% of jobs#105 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentMauritania: 4.9 points higher | 0.5% of GDP#144 of 184 · 2025 | 5.4% of GDP#34 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsMauritania: 23.1 points higher | 16.8% of GDP#143 of 168 · 2025 | 39.9% of GDP#73 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingAlgeria: 3.21× the military spending | 8.8% of GDP#2 of 155 · 2025 | 2.8% of GDP#37 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersAlgeria: 1.69× the share online | 77%#102 of 184 · 2024 | 46%#149 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsAlgeria: 1.25× the mobile subscriptions | 115 per 100#96 of 191 · 2024 | 92 per 100#141 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaMauritania: 1.43× the forest share | 1% of land#183 of 192 · 2024 | 1% of land#179 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personAlgeria: 4.1× the CO₂ per person | 3.98 t a year#63 of 185 · 2024 | 0.97 t a year#129 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyMauritania: 19.5 points higher | 0.1%#183 of 190 · 2021 | 19.6%#108 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityAlgeria: 47.8 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 52.2%#177 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Mauritania: 2.82× the air pollution | 16.5 µg/m³#105 of 191 · 2023 | 46.5 µg/m³#16 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landAlgeria: 4.1 points higher | 4.7% of land#166 of 191 · 2025 | 0.6% of land#186 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landAlgeria: 2.8 points higher | 3.2% of land#148 of 190 · 2024 | 0.4% of land#183 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressAlgeria: 11.0× the water stress | 144.8%#7 of 176 · 2022 | 13.2%#78 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationMauritania: 1.03× the rain and snow | 89 mm#174 of 180 · 2022 | 92 mm#173 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityMauritania: 0.01 higher | −0.66#153 of 193 · 2025 | −0.65#152 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionAlgeria: 0.42 higher | −0.53#122 of 193 · 2025 | −0.95#151 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateAlgeria: 1.2× the homicide rate | 1.2 per 100,000#97 of 146 · 2023 | 1.0 per 100,000#107 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Member of | OPEC | — |
| Capital | Algiers | Nouakchott |
| Currency | Algerian dinar (DZD) | Mauritanian ouguiya (MRU) |
| Official languages | Arabic, Standard Algerian Berber | Arabic |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC |
| Calling code | +213 | +222 |
| Region | Northern Africa, Africa | Western 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. Algeria sits at about 28° N and is stretched to 1.28× its true area; Mauritania at 20° N is stretched to 1.14×. 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 Algeria bigger than Mauritania?
- Yes. Algeria is 2.31 times larger than Mauritania. Algeria covers 2,381,741 km² and Mauritania covers 1,030,700 km².
- How many times does Mauritania fit into Algeria?
- About 2.3 times: Algeria has 2.31× the area of Mauritania.
- Why do Algeria and Mauritania look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Algeria is drawn about 1.28× its true area there and Mauritania about 1.14×. 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, Algeria or Mauritania?
- Algeria: 47,435,312 people against 5,315,065. Density: Algeria 20 per km², Mauritania 5.2 per km².
- Which is richer, Algeria or Mauritania?
- By gross national income per person, Algeria: $5,850 against $2,210 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 2.65× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Algeria or Mauritania?
- In Algeria: life expectancy at birth is 76.5 years, against 68.7 — 7.8 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Algeria and Mauritania have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).