Benin vs Eritrea
Eritrea and Benin are almost exactly the same size.
BeninEritreaBenin moved onto Eritrea · Equal-area projection
0.98×
Benin is 0.98× the area of Eritrea. Put the other way, Eritrea is 1.02× the size of Benin.
 Benin |  Eritrea | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 114,763 km²#100 of 194 | 117,600 km²#99 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationBenin: 4.11× the population | 14,814,460#76 of 194 · 2025 | 3,607,003#130 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityBenin: 4.21× the density | 129 / km²#70 of 194 | 31 / km²#150 of 194 |
| Urban populationBenin: 1.55× the urban share | 53%#126 of 192 · 2025 | 35%#161 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateBenin: 1.22× the births per woman | 4.48 per woman#14 of 192 · 2024 | 3.68 per woman#36 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthBenin: 0.40 points higher | +2.40%#26 of 192 · 2025 | +2.00%#48 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateBenin: 1.16× the birth rate | 33.4 per 1,000#14 of 192 · 2024 | 28.7 per 1,000#36 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateBenin: 1.45× the death rate | 8.7 per 1,000#58 of 192 · 2024 | 6.0 per 1,000#140 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Benin: 3.7 points higher | 41.3%#14 of 192 · 2025 | 37.6%#37 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Eritrea: 1.1 points higher | 3.2%#161 of 192 · 2025 | 4.3%#137 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationBenin: 1.4 per 1,000 higher | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 | −1.9 per 1,000#142 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadEritrea: 1,709× the refugees for its size | 0.09 per 1,000#119 of 190 · 2025 | 153.84 per 1,000#3 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyEritrea: 7.9 years longer | 61.0 years#184 of 192 · 2024 | 68.9 years#137 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityBenin: 1.83× the infant mortality | 45.2 per 1,000 births#17 of 191 · 2024 | 24.7 per 1,000 births#56 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsBenin: 2.44× the doctors per person | 0.22 per 1,000#146 of 178 · 2023 | 0.09 per 1,000#168 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | 10.2%#132 of 145 · 2022 | — |
| Human Development IndexBenin: 0.012 higher | 0.515#170 of 190 · 2023 | 0.503#175 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | $1,600#155 of 185 · 2025 | — |
| GDP | $24.57B2025 | — |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $4,817#153 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| GDP growth | +8.1%#9 of 187 · 2025 | — |
| Inflation | +1.1%#138 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentEritrea: 3.75× the unemployment | 1.6%#165 of 178 · 2025 | 6.0%#71 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 27.2%#28 of 149 · 2021 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 34.4#74 of 149 · 2021 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureEritrea: 15.3 points higher | 40.2% of jobs#40 of 178 · 2025 | 55.5% of jobs#16 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryBenin: 5.6 points higher | 18.3% of jobs#100 of 178 · 2025 | 12.7% of jobs#147 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesBenin: 9.6 points higher | 41.4% of jobs#144 of 178 · 2025 | 31.8% of jobs#163 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investment | 2.0% of GDP#92 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| Exports | 17.1% of GDP#141 of 168 · 2025 | — |
| Military spending | 0.9% of GDP#121 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet usersBenin: 2.38× the share online | 34%#160 of 184 · 2024 | 14%#180 of 184 · 2020 |
| Mobile subscriptionsBenin: 2.14× the mobile subscriptions | 126 per 100#64 of 191 · 2024 | 59 per 100#177 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaBenin: 2.34× the forest share | 28% of land#104 of 192 · 2024 | 12% of land#145 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personBenin: 2.23× the CO₂ per person | 0.49 t a year#152 of 185 · 2024 | 0.22 t a year#167 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyEritrea: 26.2 points higher | 54.5%#44 of 190 · 2021 | 80.7%#15 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityBenin: 3.7 points higher | 59.0%#166 of 192 · 2024 | 55.3%#169 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Benin: 1.18× the air pollution | 39.7 µg/m³#24 of 191 · 2023 | 33.7 µg/m³#36 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landBenin: 36.1 points higher | 36.1% of land#22 of 191 · 2025 | 0.0% of land#188 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landBenin: 26.6 points higher | 32.3% of land#24 of 190 · 2024 | 5.7% of land#124 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressEritrea: 11.2× the water stress | 1.0%#160 of 176 · 2022 | 11.2%#87 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationBenin: 2.71× the rain and snow | 1,039 mm#89 of 180 · 2022 | 384 mm#150 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityBenin: 0.20 higher | −0.40#132 of 193 · 2025 | −0.60#148 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionBenin: 1.40 higher | −0.21#93 of 193 · 2025 | −1.61#189 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 1.1 per 100,000#99 of 146 · 2017 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | One-party stateauthoritarian |
| Capital | Porto-Novo | Asmara |
| Currency | West African CFA franc (XOF) | Nakfa (ERN) |
| Official languages | French | English, Arabic, Tigrinya |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC+3 |
| Calling code | +229 | +291 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | 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. Benin sits at about 10° N and is stretched to 1.03× its true area; Eritrea at 15° N is stretched to 1.08×. 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 Eritrea?
- No. Benin and Eritrea are almost exactly the same size. Benin covers 114,763 km² and Eritrea covers 117,600 km².
- How many times does Benin fit into Eritrea?
- About 1.0 times: Eritrea has 1.02× the area of Benin.
- Why do Benin and Eritrea 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 Eritrea about 1.08×. 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 Eritrea?
- Benin: 14,814,460 people against 3,607,003. Density: Benin 129 per km², Eritrea 31 per km².
- Where do people live longer, Benin or Eritrea?
- In Eritrea: life expectancy at birth is 68.9 years, against 61.0 — 7.9 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Benin and Eritrea have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Benin: presidential republic; Eritrea: one-party state.