Cameroon vs Gabon
Cameroon is 78% larger than Gabon. Gabon would fit into Cameroon about 1.8 times.
CameroonGabonCameroon moved onto Gabon · Equal-area projection
1.78×
Cameroon is 1.78× the area of Gabon.
 Cameroon |  Gabon | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaCameroon: 1.78× the area | 475,442 km²#52 of 194 | 267,667 km²#75 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationCameroon: 11.5× the population | 29,879,337#51 of 194 · 2025 | 2,593,130#140 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityCameroon: 6.49× the density | 63 / km²#122 of 194 | 9.7 / km²#181 of 194 |
| Urban populationGabon: 1.65× the urban share | 56%#121 of 192 · 2025 | 92%#16 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateCameroon: 1.19× the births per woman | 4.26 per woman#16 of 192 · 2024 | 3.59 per woman#40 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthCameroon: 0.45 points higher | +2.56%#22 of 192 · 2025 | +2.11%#41 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateCameroon: 1.23× the birth rate | 33.3 per 1,000#15 of 192 · 2024 | 27.1 per 1,000#42 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateCameroon: 1.13× the death rate | 7.0 per 1,000#102 of 192 · 2024 | 6.2 per 1,000#129 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Cameroon: 4.9 points higher | 41.1%#16 of 192 · 2025 | 36.2%#46 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Gabon: 1.3 points higher | 2.8%#175 of 192 · 2025 | 4.1%#139 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationGabon: 0.9 per 1,000 higher | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 | +0.4 per 1,000#60 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadCameroon: 12.4× the refugees for its size | 4.70 per 1,000#28 of 190 · 2025 | 0.38 per 1,000#82 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyGabon: 4.5 years longer | 64.0 years#169 of 192 · 2024 | 68.5 years#141 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityCameroon: 1.55× the infant mortality | 40.2 per 1,000 births#26 of 191 · 2024 | 25.9 per 1,000 births#55 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsGabon: 3.71× the doctors per person | 0.14 per 1,000#161 of 178 · 2022 | 0.52 per 1,000#127 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | 16.7%#118 of 145 · 2024 | — |
| Human Development IndexGabon: 0.145 higher | 0.588#152 of 190 · 2023 | 0.733#107 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaGabon: 4.35× the income per person | $1,860#152 of 185 · 2025 | $8,090#87 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPCameroon: 2.75× the economy | $58.93B2025 | $21.43B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Gabon: 3.84× the output per person | $5,788#148 of 184 · 2025 | $22,218#88 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthCameroon: 0.7 points higher | +3.2%#93 of 187 · 2025 | +2.5%#118 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationCameroon: 1.6 points higher | +3.4%#78 of 176 · 2025 | +1.8%#124 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentGabon: 5.61× the unemployment | 3.6%#119 of 178 · 2025 | 20.2%#5 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyCameroon: 7.03× the share in extreme poverty | 26.7%#29 of 149 · 2021 | 3.8%#60 of 149 · 2017 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Cameroon: 4.2 higher | 42.2#29 of 149 · 2021 | 38.0#52 of 149 · 2017 |
| Jobs in agricultureCameroon: 13.0 points higher | 41.9% of jobs#37 of 178 · 2025 | 28.9% of jobs#63 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryGabon: 4.3 points higher | 14.6% of jobs#140 of 178 · 2025 | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesGabon: 8.8 points higher | 43.5% of jobs#141 of 178 · 2025 | 52.3% of jobs#108 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentGabon: 0.8 points higher | 1.0% of GDP#126 of 184 · 2025 | 1.8% of GDP#100 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsGabon: 42.4 points higher | 13.1% of GDP#155 of 168 · 2025 | 55.5% of GDP#36 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingGabon: 1.57× the military spending | 1.1% of GDP#109 of 155 · 2025 | 1.7% of GDP#79 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersGabon: 1.48× the share online | 46%#147 of 184 · 2024 | 69%#121 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsGabon: 1.16× the mobile subscriptions | 108 per 100#114 of 191 · 2024 | 125 per 100#69 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaGabon: 2.25× the forest share | 41% of land#66 of 192 · 2024 | 91% of land#3 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personGabon: 5.86× the CO₂ per person | 0.35 t a year#157 of 185 · 2024 | 2.05 t a year#101 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyGabon: 12.1 points higher | 79.2%#19 of 190 · 2021 | 91.3%#4 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityGabon: 23.1 points higher | 72.0%#153 of 192 · 2024 | 95.1%#131 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Cameroon: 1.78× the air pollution | 55.6 µg/m³#10 of 191 · 2023 | 31.3 µg/m³#44 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landGabon: 11.6 points higher | 11.0% of land#140 of 191 · 2025 | 22.6% of land#64 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landCameroon: 11.8 points higher | 13.1% of land#79 of 190 · 2024 | 1.3% of land#169 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressCameroon: 3.2× the water stress | 1.6%#153 of 176 · 2022 | 0.5%#165 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationGabon: 1.14× the rain and snow | 1,604 mm#51 of 180 · 2022 | 1,831 mm#39 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityGabon: 1.81 higher | −1.69#176 of 193 · 2025 | +0.12#93 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionGabon: 0.42 higher | −1.20#166 of 193 · 2025 | −0.78#140 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 6.8 per 100,000#38 of 146 · 2022 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Member of | — | OPEC |
| Capital | Yaounde | Libreville |
| Currency | Central African CFA franc (XAF) | Central African CFA franc (XAF) |
| Official languages | English, French | French |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC+1 |
| Calling code | +237 | +241 |
| Region | Middle Africa, Africa | Middle 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. Cameroon sits at about 6° N and is stretched to 1.01× its true area; Gabon at 1° S is stretched to 1.0×. 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 Cameroon bigger than Gabon?
- Yes. Cameroon is 78% larger than Gabon. Cameroon covers 475,442 km² and Gabon covers 267,667 km².
- How many times does Gabon fit into Cameroon?
- About 1.8 times: Cameroon has 1.78× the area of Gabon.
- Why do Cameroon and Gabon look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Cameroon is drawn about 1.01× its true area there and Gabon about 1.0×. 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, Cameroon or Gabon?
- Cameroon: 29,879,337 people against 2,593,130. Density: Cameroon 63 per km², Gabon 9.7 per km².
- Which is richer, Cameroon or Gabon?
- By gross national income per person, Gabon: $8,090 against $1,860 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 4.35× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Cameroon or Gabon?
- In Gabon: life expectancy at birth is 68.5 years, against 64.0 — 4.5 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Cameroon and Gabon have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).