Botswana vs Zimbabwe
Botswana is 49% larger than Zimbabwe.
BotswanaZimbabweBotswana moved onto Zimbabwe · Equal-area projection
1.49×
Botswana is 1.49× the area of Zimbabwe.
 Botswana |  Zimbabwe | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaBotswana: 1.49× the area | 581,737 km²#47 of 194 | 390,757 km²#60 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 3 | 4 |
| People | ||
| PopulationZimbabwe: 6.62× the population | 2,562,122#141 of 194 · 2025 | 16,950,795#74 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityZimbabwe: 9.85× the density | 4.4 / km²#186 of 194 | 43 / km²#142 of 194 |
| Urban populationBotswana: 1.68× the urban share | 68%#81 of 192 · 2025 | 41%#148 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateZimbabwe: 1.36× the births per woman | 2.70 per woman#62 of 192 · 2024 | 3.67 per woman#37 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthZimbabwe: 0.27 points higher | +1.61%#63 of 192 · 2025 | +1.88%#52 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateZimbabwe: 1.23× the birth rate | 24.4 per 1,000#53 of 192 · 2024 | 29.9 per 1,000#31 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateZimbabwe: 1.32× the death rate | 5.7 per 1,000#148 of 192 · 2024 | 7.5 per 1,000#86 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Zimbabwe: 8.3 points higher | 32.0%#58 of 192 · 2025 | 40.3%#23 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Botswana: 0.5 points higher | 4.1%#139 of 192 · 2025 | 3.6%#150 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationBotswana: 1.0 per 1,000 higher | −2.2 per 1,000#147 of 192 · 2025 | −3.2 per 1,000#162 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadZimbabwe: 2.6× the refugees for its size | 0.15 per 1,000#110 of 190 · 2025 | 0.39 per 1,000#80 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyBotswana: 6.2 years longer | 69.3 years#135 of 192 · 2024 | 63.1 years#175 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityZimbabwe: 1.94× the infant mortality | 32.1 per 1,000 births#42 of 191 · 2024 | 62.4 per 1,000 births#6 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsBotswana: 2.71× the doctors per person | 0.38 per 1,000#133 of 178 · 2023 | 0.14 per 1,000#161 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolmentBotswana: 2.78× the university enrolment | 21.4%#112 of 145 · 2024 | 7.7%#136 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexBotswana: 0.133 higher | 0.731#110 of 190 · 2023 | 0.598#150 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaBotswana: 2.78× the income per person | $7,390#93 of 185 · 2025 | $2,660#142 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPZimbabwe: 2.57× the economy | $19.93B2025 | $51.22B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Botswana: 3.2× the output per person | $20,698#91 of 184 · 2025 | $6,470#143 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthZimbabwe: 8.8 points higher | −0.7%#178 of 187 · 2025 | +8.1%#9 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationZimbabwe: 102.0 points higher | +2.7%#96 of 176 · 2025 | +104.7%#3 of 176 · 2022 |
| UnemploymentBotswana: 2.63× the unemployment | 24.5%#4 of 178 · 2025 | 9.3%#38 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyZimbabwe: 2.3× the share in extreme poverty | 21.4%#34 of 149 · 2015 | 49.2%#12 of 149 · 2019 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Botswana: 4.6 higher | 54.9#2 of 149 · 2015 | 50.3#8 of 149 · 2019 |
| Jobs in agricultureZimbabwe: 36.3 points higher | 18.0% of jobs#83 of 178 · 2025 | 54.3% of jobs#19 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryBotswana: 4.3 points higher | 15.8% of jobs#133 of 178 · 2025 | 11.5% of jobs#151 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesBotswana: 32.0 points higher | 66.2% of jobs#66 of 178 · 2025 | 34.2% of jobs#159 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentZimbabwe: 5.2 points higher | -3.3% of GDP#180 of 184 · 2025 | 1.9% of GDP#96 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsBotswana: 13.9 points higher | 32.0% of GDP#93 of 168 · 2025 | 18.1% of GDP#139 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spendingBotswana: 5.55× the military spending | 3.1% of GDP#28 of 155 · 2025 | 0.6% of GDP#139 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersBotswana: 1.38× the share online | 58%#138 of 184 · 2024 | 42%#151 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsBotswana: 1.74× the mobile subscriptions | 164 per 100#17 of 191 · 2024 | 94 per 100#137 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaZimbabwe: 1.28× the forest share | 28% of land#105 of 192 · 2024 | 36% of land#81 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personBotswana: 3.56× the CO₂ per person | 2.74 t a year#87 of 185 · 2024 | 0.77 t a year#136 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyZimbabwe: 55.0 points higher | 27.4%#88 of 190 · 2021 | 82.4%#13 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityBotswana: 18.2 points higher | 80.2%#148 of 192 · 2024 | 62.0%#161 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Zimbabwe: 1.14× the air pollution | 13.2 µg/m³#133 of 191 · 2023 | 15.0 µg/m³#118 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landZimbabwe: 0.7 points higher | 27.6% of land#45 of 191 · 2025 | 28.3% of land#42 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landZimbabwe: 9.9 points higher | 0.5% of land#182 of 190 · 2024 | 10.4% of land#97 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressZimbabwe: 21.0× the water stress | 2.2%#143 of 176 · 2022 | 46.1%#40 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationZimbabwe: 1.58× the rain and snow | 416 mm#149 of 180 · 2022 | 657 mm#119 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityBotswana: 1.95 higher | +1.08#29 of 193 · 2025 | −0.87#160 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionBotswana: 1.88 higher | +0.59#52 of 193 · 2025 | −1.29#172 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateBotswana: 1.68× the homicide rate | 11.4 per 100,000#25 of 146 · 2021 | 6.8 per 100,000#38 of 146 · 2022 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republic | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Gaborone | Harare |
| Currency | Botswana pula (BWP) | Zimbabwe ZiG (ZWG), United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | English | English, Xhosa, Sesotho, Tswana, Chewa, Shona, Tsonga, Venda, Khoisan, Northern Ndebele, Tonga, Kalanga, Nambya, Ndau, Zimbabwe Sign Language, Barwe |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+2 | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +267 | +263 |
| Region | Southern 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. Botswana sits at about 22° S and is stretched to 1.17× its true area; Zimbabwe at 19° S is stretched to 1.12×. 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 Botswana bigger than Zimbabwe?
- Yes. Botswana is 49% larger than Zimbabwe. Botswana covers 581,737 km² and Zimbabwe covers 390,757 km².
- How many times does Zimbabwe fit into Botswana?
- About 1.5 times: Botswana has 1.49× the area of Zimbabwe.
- Why do Botswana and Zimbabwe look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Botswana is drawn about 1.17× its true area there and Zimbabwe about 1.12×. 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, Botswana or Zimbabwe?
- Zimbabwe: 16,950,795 people against 2,562,122. Density: Botswana 4.4 per km², Zimbabwe 43 per km².
- Which is richer, Botswana or Zimbabwe?
- By gross national income per person, Botswana: $7,390 against $2,660 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 2.78× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Botswana or Zimbabwe?
- In Botswana: life expectancy at birth is 69.3 years, against 63.1 — 6.2 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Botswana and Zimbabwe have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Botswana: parliamentary republic; Zimbabwe: presidential republic.