Belarus vs Syria
Belarus is 12% larger than Syria.
BelarusSyriaBelarus moved onto Syria · Equal-area projection
1.12×
Belarus is 1.12× the area of Syria.
 Belarus |  Syria | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaBelarus: 1.12× the area | 207,597 km²#84 of 194 | 185,180 km²#87 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 5 | 5 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSyria: 2.82× the population | 9,085,991#100 of 194 · 2025 | 25,620,427#57 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySyria: 3.16× the density | 44 / km²#141 of 194 | 138 / km²#66 of 194 |
| Urban populationBelarus: 1.1× the urban share | 80%#44 of 192 · 2025 | 72%#65 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSyria: 2.21× the births per woman | 1.22 per woman#176 of 192 · 2024 | 2.70 per woman#62 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSyria: 4.28 points higher | −0.51%#181 of 192 · 2025 | +3.77%#5 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSyria: 3.31× the birth rate | 7.0 per 1,000#180 of 192 · 2024 | 23.2 per 1,000#57 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateBelarus: 2.67× the death rate | 13.1 per 1,000#11 of 192 · 2024 | 4.9 per 1,000#173 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Syria: 12.5 points higher | 15.9%#151 of 192 · 2025 | 28.4%#76 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Belarus: 13.5 points higher | 18.3%#39 of 192 · 2025 | 4.8%#127 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSyria: 16.8 per 1,000 higher | −0.3 per 1,000#89 of 192 · 2025 | +16.5 per 1,000#3 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSyria: 88.7× the refugees for its size | 2.14 per 1,000#40 of 190 · 2025 | 189.92 per 1,000#2 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyBelarus: 1.8 years longer | 74.4 years#93 of 192 · 2024 | 72.6 years#108 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySyria: 9.83× the infant mortality | 1.8 per 1,000 births#187 of 191 · 2024 | 17.7 per 1,000 births#72 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsBelarus: 3.11× the doctors per person | 4.72 per 1,000#12 of 178 · 2023 | 1.52 per 1,000#94 of 178 · 2021 |
| University enrolment | 70.1%#45 of 145 · 2024 | — |
| Human Development IndexBelarus: 0.260 higher | 0.824#64 of 190 · 2023 | 0.564#159 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaBelarus: 12.7× the income per person | $9,160#83 of 185 · 2025 | $720#177 of 185 · 2022 |
| GDPBelarus: 3.93× the economy | $93.4B2025 | $23.74B2022 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Belarus: 7.08× the output per person | $34,716#63 of 184 · 2025 | $4,905#152 of 184 · 2022 |
| GDP growthBelarus: 1.5 points higher | +1.3%#148 of 187 · 2025 | −0.2%#175 of 187 · 2022 |
| Inflation | +6.6%#34 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentSyria: 4.0× the unemployment | 3.4%#126 of 178 · 2025 | 13.6%#18 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 0.0%#136 of 149 · 2020 | 18.0%#37 of 149 · 2022 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Syria: 2.0 higher | 24.4#147 of 149 · 2020 | 26.4#140 of 149 · 2022 |
| Jobs in agricultureSyria: 6.8 points higher | 9.5% of jobs#110 of 178 · 2025 | 16.3% of jobs#87 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryBelarus: 5.9 points higher | 31.1% of jobs#15 of 178 · 2025 | 25.2% of jobs#42 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesBelarus: 1.0 points higher | 59.5% of jobs#85 of 178 · 2025 | 58.5% of jobs#88 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investment | 1.8% of GDP#100 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| ExportsBelarus: 48.3 points higher | 55.1% of GDP#38 of 168 · 2025 | 6.8% of GDP#165 of 168 · 2022 |
| Military spending | 2.4% of GDP#44 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet users | 94%#32 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsBelarus: 1.85× the mobile subscriptions | 131 per 100#50 of 191 · 2024 | 71 per 100#157 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaBelarus: 15.2× the forest share | 44% of land#58 of 192 · 2024 | 3% of land#171 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personBelarus: 4.68× the CO₂ per person | 5.94 t a year#40 of 185 · 2024 | 1.27 t a year#121 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyBelarus: 7.1 points higher | 8.2%#152 of 190 · 2021 | 1.1%#173 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityBelarus: 10.7 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 89.3%#139 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Syria: 2.68× the air pollution | 12.0 µg/m³#139 of 191 · 2023 | 32.1 µg/m³#42 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landBelarus: 8.5 points higher | 9.2% of land#145 of 191 · 2025 | 0.7% of land#185 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landBelarus: 3.2 points higher | 27.2% of land#35 of 190 · 2024 | 24.0% of land#41 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSyria: 26.5× the water stress | 4.7%#123 of 176 · 2022 | 124.4%#12 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationBelarus: 2.45× the rain and snow | 618 mm#129 of 180 · 2022 | 252 mm#157 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityBelarus: 2.15 higher | −0.17#117 of 193 · 2025 | −2.32#191 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionBelarus: 1.05 higher | −0.57#126 of 193 · 2025 | −1.62#190 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 2.4 per 100,000#71 of 146 · 2019 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republicpresidential republic in name, although in fact a dictatorship | Military or transitionaltransitional presidential republic |
| Capital | Minsk | Damascus |
| Currency | Belarusian ruble (BYN) | Syrian pound (SYP) |
| Official languages | Russian, Belarusian | Arabic |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+3 | UTC+3 |
| Calling code | +375 | +963 |
| Region | Eastern Europe, Europe | Western Asia, Asia |
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. Belarus sits at about 54° N and is stretched to 2.83× its true area; Syria at 35° N is stretched to 1.49×. That difference is why Belarus looks so much bigger than it is next to Syria. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Belarus bigger than Syria?
- Yes. Belarus is 12% larger than Syria. Belarus covers 207,597 km² and Syria covers 185,180 km².
- How many times does Syria fit into Belarus?
- About 1.1 times: Belarus has 1.12× the area of Syria.
- Why do Belarus and Syria look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Belarus is drawn about 2.83× its true area there and Syria about 1.49×. That is why Belarus looks so much bigger than it really is next to Syria. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Belarus or Syria?
- Syria: 25,620,427 people against 9,085,991. Density: Belarus 44 per km², Syria 138 per km².
- Which is richer, Belarus or Syria?
- By gross national income per person, Belarus: $9,160 against $720 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 12.7× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Belarus or Syria?
- In Belarus: life expectancy at birth is 74.4 years, against 72.6 — 1.8 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Belarus and Syria have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Belarus: presidential republic; Syria: military or transitional.