Cabo Verde vs French Polynesia
French Polynesia is 3% larger than Cabo Verde.
Cabo VerdeFrench PolynesiaCabo Verde moved onto French Polynesia · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
0.97×
Cabo Verde is 0.97× the area of French Polynesia. Put the other way, French Polynesia is 1.03× the size of Cabo Verde.
 Cabo Verde |  French Polynesia | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaFrench Polynesia: 1.03× the area | 4,033 km²#166 of 194 | 4,167 km² |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationCabo Verde: 1.87× the population | 527,326#168 of 194 · 2025 | 282,4652025 |
| DensityCabo Verde: 1.93× the density | 131 / km²#69 of 194 | 68 / km² |
| Urban populationCabo Verde: 1.26× the urban share | 78%#51 of 192 · 2025 | 62%2025 |
| Fertility rateAbout the same births per woman | 1.51 per woman#135 of 192 · 2024 | 1.49 per woman2024 |
| Population growthCabo Verde: 0.24 points higher | +0.47%#128 of 192 · 2025 | +0.23%2025 |
| Birth rateCabo Verde: 1.14× the birth rate | 12.2 per 1,000#110 of 192 · 2024 | 10.7 per 1,0002024 |
| Death rateCabo Verde: 1.34× the death rate | 5.1 per 1,000#168 of 192 · 2024 | 3.8 per 1,0002024 |
| Children under 15Cabo Verde: 6.2 points higher | 24.7%#92 of 192 · 2025 | 18.5%2025 |
| People over 65French Polynesia: 4.7 points higher | 7.2%#99 of 192 · 2025 | 11.9%2025 |
| Net migrationCabo Verde: 1.8 per 1,000 higher | −2.4 per 1,000#153 of 192 · 2025 | −4.2 per 1,0002025 |
| Refugees abroad | 0.03 per 1,000#138 of 190 · 2025 | 0.00 per 1,0002025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyFrench Polynesia: 8.0 years longer | 76.2 years#77 of 192 · 2024 | 84.2 years2024 |
| Infant mortality | 10.6 per 1,000 births#108 of 191 · 2024 | — |
| Doctors | 0.73 per 1,000#117 of 178 · 2023 | — |
| Human Development Index | 0.668#132 of 190 · 2023 | — |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaFrench Polynesia: 4.31× the income per person | $5,590#109 of 185 · 2025 | $24,1002024 |
| GDPFrench Polynesia: 2.07× the economy | $3.06B2025 | $6.32B2024 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $12,165#120 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| GDP growthCabo Verde: 5.2 points higher | +6.3%#26 of 187 · 2025 | +1.1%2024 |
| Inflation | +2.3%#109 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentAbout the same unemployment | 11.9%#26 of 178 · 2025 | 11.7%2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 14.6%#41 of 149 · 2015 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 42.4#27 of 149 · 2015 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureCabo Verde: 7.3 points higher | 9.2% of jobs#112 of 178 · 2025 | 1.9% of jobs2025 |
| Jobs in industryCabo Verde: 8.8 points higher | 23.1% of jobs#54 of 178 · 2025 | 14.3% of jobs2025 |
| Jobs in servicesFrench Polynesia: 16.0 points higher | 67.7% of jobs#61 of 178 · 2025 | 83.7% of jobs2025 |
| Foreign investmentCabo Verde: 5.2 points higher | 5.0% of GDP#37 of 184 · 2025 | -0.2% of GDP2024 |
| ExportsCabo Verde: 23.7 points higher | 42.0% of GDP#63 of 168 · 2025 | 18.3% of GDP2024 |
| Military spending | 0.7% of GDP#135 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet users | 75%#109 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsFrench Polynesia: 1.06× the mobile subscriptions | 112 per 100#107 of 191 · 2024 | 119 per 1002023 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaFrench Polynesia: 3.39× the forest share | 13% of land#140 of 192 · 2024 | 42% of land2024 |
| CO₂ per personFrench Polynesia: 2.68× the CO₂ per person | 1.29 t a year#120 of 185 · 2024 | 3.46 t a year2024 |
| Renewable energyCabo Verde: 14.8 points higher | 21.8%#100 of 190 · 2022 | 7.0%2022 |
| Access to electricityFrench Polynesia: 1.6 points higher | 98.4%#117 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5) | 20.2 µg/m³#80 of 191 · 2023 | — |
| Protected landCabo Verde: 12.0 points higher | 17.6% of land#96 of 191 · 2025 | 5.6% of land2025 |
| Arable landCabo Verde: 17.3 points higher | 18.0% of land#59 of 190 · 2024 | 0.7% of land2024 |
| Water stress | 59.7%#29 of 176 · 2022 | — |
| Precipitation | 228 mm#161 of 180 · 2022 | — |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityCabo Verde: 0.28 higher | +0.86#45 of 193 · 2025 | +0.582025 |
| Control of corruptionCabo Verde: 1.11 higher | +0.91#37 of 193 · 2025 | −0.202025 |
| Homicide rate | 7.0 per 100,000#37 of 146 · 2020 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Territory of France |
| Government | Parliamentary republic | Dependent territoryparliamentary democracy (Assembly of French Polynesia); an overseas collectivity of France |
| Capital | Praia | Papeete |
| Currency | Cape Verdean escudo (CVE) | CFP Franc (XPF) |
| Official languages | Portuguese, Cape Verdean Creole | French |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC−1 | UTC−10 · UTC−10 to UTC−9, 3 time zones |
| Calling code | +238 | +689 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | Polynesia, Oceania |
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. Cabo Verde sits at about 16° N and is stretched to 1.08× its true area; French Polynesia at 15° S is stretched to 1.07×. 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 Cabo Verde bigger than French Polynesia?
- No. Cabo Verde is 3% smaller than French Polynesia. Cabo Verde covers 4,033 km² and French Polynesia covers 4,167 km².
- How many times does Cabo Verde fit into French Polynesia?
- About 1.0 times: French Polynesia has 1.03× the area of Cabo Verde.
- Why do Cabo Verde and French Polynesia look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Cabo Verde is drawn about 1.08× its true area there and French Polynesia about 1.07×. 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, Cabo Verde or French Polynesia?
- Cabo Verde: 527,326 people against 282,465. Density: Cabo Verde 131 per km², French Polynesia 68 per km².
- Which is richer, Cabo Verde or French Polynesia?
- By gross national income per person, French Polynesia: $24,100 against $5,590 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 4.31× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Cabo Verde or French Polynesia?
- In French Polynesia: life expectancy at birth is 84.2 years, against 76.2 — 8.0 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Cabo Verde and French Polynesia have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Cabo Verde: parliamentary republic; French Polynesia: dependent territory.