Benin vs Cuba
Benin is 4% larger than Cuba.
BeninCubaBenin moved onto Cuba · Equal-area projection
1.04×
Benin is 1.04× the area of Cuba.
 Benin |  Cuba | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaBenin: 1.04× the area | 114,763 km²#100 of 194 | 109,884 km²#104 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationBenin: 1.35× the population | 14,814,460#76 of 194 · 2025 | 10,937,203#88 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityBenin: 1.3× the density | 129 / km²#70 of 194 | 100 / km²#89 of 194 |
| Urban populationCuba: 1.45× the urban share | 53%#126 of 192 · 2025 | 77%#54 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateBenin: 3.09× the births per woman | 4.48 per woman#14 of 192 · 2024 | 1.45 per woman#146 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthBenin: 2.79 points higher | +2.40%#26 of 192 · 2025 | −0.39%#176 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateBenin: 3.88× the birth rate | 33.4 per 1,000#14 of 192 · 2024 | 8.6 per 1,000#161 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateCuba: 1.2× the death rate | 8.7 per 1,000#58 of 192 · 2024 | 10.4 per 1,000#29 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Benin: 26.3 points higher | 41.3%#14 of 192 · 2025 | 15.0%#162 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Cuba: 13.8 points higher | 3.2%#161 of 192 · 2025 | 17.0%#46 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationBenin: 1.5 per 1,000 higher | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 | −2.0 per 1,000#144 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadCuba: 29.9× the refugees for its size | 0.09 per 1,000#119 of 190 · 2025 | 2.69 per 1,000#35 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyCuba: 17.3 years longer | 61.0 years#184 of 192 · 2024 | 78.3 years#50 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityBenin: 6.65× the infant mortality | 45.2 per 1,000 births#17 of 191 · 2024 | 6.8 per 1,000 births#135 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsCuba: 43.4× the doctors per person | 0.22 per 1,000#146 of 178 · 2023 | 9.54 per 1,000#1 of 178 · 2021 |
| University enrolmentCuba: 4.23× the university enrolment | 10.2%#132 of 145 · 2022 | 43.1%#85 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexCuba: 0.247 higher | 0.515#170 of 190 · 2023 | 0.762#96 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | $1,600#155 of 185 · 2025 | — |
| GDPCuba: 4.37× the economy | $24.57B2025 | $107.35B2020 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $4,817#153 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| GDP growthBenin: 9.2 points higher | +8.1%#9 of 187 · 2025 | −1.1%#180 of 187 · 2024 |
| Inflation | +1.1%#138 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentCuba: 1.06× the unemployment | 1.6%#165 of 178 · 2025 | 1.7%#164 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 27.2%#28 of 149 · 2021 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 34.4#74 of 149 · 2021 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureBenin: 24.7 points higher | 40.2% of jobs#40 of 178 · 2025 | 15.5% of jobs#91 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryBenin: 1.4 points higher | 18.3% of jobs#100 of 178 · 2025 | 16.9% of jobs#115 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesCuba: 26.2 points higher | 41.4% of jobs#144 of 178 · 2025 | 67.6% of jobs#62 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentBenin: 2.0 points higher | 2.0% of GDP#92 of 184 · 2025 | 0.0% of GDP#162 of 184 · 2020 |
| ExportsCuba: 25.4 points higher | 17.1% of GDP#141 of 168 · 2025 | 42.5% of GDP#61 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spending | 0.9% of GDP#121 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet usersCuba: 2.07× the share online | 34%#160 of 184 · 2024 | 71%#117 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsBenin: 1.73× the mobile subscriptions | 126 per 100#64 of 191 · 2024 | 73 per 100#155 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaCuba: 1.24× the forest share | 28% of land#104 of 192 · 2024 | 35% of land#84 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personCuba: 3.9× the CO₂ per person | 0.49 t a year#152 of 185 · 2024 | 1.91 t a year#104 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyBenin: 33.6 points higher | 54.5%#44 of 190 · 2021 | 20.9%#103 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityCuba: 41.0 points higher | 59.0%#166 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Benin: 4.22× the air pollution | 39.7 µg/m³#24 of 191 · 2023 | 9.4 µg/m³#158 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landBenin: 20.5 points higher | 36.1% of land#22 of 191 · 2025 | 15.6% of land#111 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landBenin: 4.3 points higher | 32.3% of land#24 of 190 · 2024 | 28.0% of land#34 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressCuba: 23.9× the water stress | 1.0%#160 of 176 · 2022 | 23.9%#62 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationCuba: 1.28× the rain and snow | 1,039 mm#89 of 180 · 2022 | 1,335 mm#68 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityCuba: 0.71 higher | −0.40#132 of 193 · 2025 | +0.31#79 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionBenin: 0.52 higher | −0.21#93 of 193 · 2025 | −0.73#135 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateCuba: 4.09× the homicide rate | 1.1 per 100,000#99 of 146 · 2017 | 4.5 per 100,000#51 of 146 · 2019 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | One-party statecommunist state |
| Capital | Porto-Novo | Havana |
| Currency | West African CFA franc (XOF) | Cuban peso (CUP) |
| Official languages | French | Spanish |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC−5, summer time UTC−4 |
| Calling code | +229 | +53 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | Caribbean, North America |
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. Benin sits at about 10° N and is stretched to 1.03× its true area; Cuba at 22° N is stretched to 1.16×. 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 Benin bigger than Cuba?
- Yes. Benin is 4% larger than Cuba. Benin covers 114,763 km² and Cuba covers 109,884 km².
- How many times does Cuba fit into Benin?
- About 1.0 times: Benin has 1.04× the area of Cuba.
- Why do Benin and Cuba look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Benin is drawn about 1.03× its true area there and Cuba about 1.16×. 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, Benin or Cuba?
- Benin: 14,814,460 people against 10,937,203. Density: Benin 129 per km², Cuba 100 per km².
- Where do people live longer, Benin or Cuba?
- In Cuba: life expectancy at birth is 78.3 years, against 61.0 — 17.3 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Benin and Cuba have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Benin: presidential republic; Cuba: one-party state.