Chad vs Libya
Libya is 37% larger than Chad.
ChadLibyaChad moved onto Libya · Equal-area projection
0.73×
Chad is 0.73× the area of Libya. Put the other way, Libya is 1.37× the size of Chad.
 Chad |  Libya | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaLibya: 1.37× the area | 1,284,000 km²#20 of 194 | 1,759,541 km²#16 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 6 |
| People | ||
| PopulationChad: 2.82× the population | 21,003,705#64 of 194 · 2025 | 7,458,555#105 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityChad: 3.86× the density | 16 / km²#177 of 194 | 4.2 / km²#187 of 194 |
| Urban populationLibya: 3.18× the urban share | 28%#175 of 192 · 2025 | 88%#26 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateChad: 2.62× the births per woman | 6.03 per woman#1 of 192 · 2024 | 2.30 per woman#80 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthChad: 2.37 points higher | +3.41%#6 of 192 · 2025 | +1.04%#94 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateChad: 2.62× the birth rate | 43.3 per 1,000#2 of 192 · 2024 | 16.5 per 1,000#88 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateChad: 1.71× the death rate | 11.1 per 1,000#24 of 192 · 2024 | 6.5 per 1,000#122 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Chad: 19.2 points higher | 46.0%#4 of 192 · 2025 | 26.8%#83 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Libya: 3.1 points higher | 2.1%#189 of 192 · 2025 | 5.2%#120 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationLibya: 5.9 per 1,000 higher | −5.9 per 1,000#175 of 192 · 2025 | 0.0 per 1,000#73 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadLibya: 3.15× the refugees for its size | 0.73 per 1,000#67 of 190 · 2025 | 2.30 per 1,000#39 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyLibya: 15.9 years longer | 55.2 years#191 of 192 · 2024 | 71.1 years#125 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityChad: 7.13× the infant mortality | 56.3 per 1,000 births#10 of 191 · 2024 | 7.9 per 1,000 births#124 of 191 · 2024 |
| Doctors | 0.09 per 1,000#168 of 178 · 2023 | — |
| University enrolment | 4.4%#142 of 145 · 2020 | — |
| Human Development IndexLibya: 0.305 higher | 0.416#187 of 190 · 2023 | 0.721#114 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaLibya: 7.47× the income per person | $970#171 of 185 · 2025 | $7,250#95 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPLibya: 2.24× the economy | $21.47B2025 | $48.1B2025 |
| Income group | Low income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Libya: 5.69× the output per person | $2,903#172 of 184 · 2025 | $16,521#104 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthLibya: 7.8 points higher | +5.6%#38 of 187 · 2025 | +13.4%#2 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationLibya: 5.7 points higher | −3.9%#173 of 176 · 2025 | +1.8%#124 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentLibya: 17.1× the unemployment | 1.1%#172 of 178 · 2025 | 18.8%#9 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 39.5%#20 of 149 · 2022 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 37.4#56 of 149 · 2022 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureChad: 61.7 points higher | 71.7% of jobs#4 of 178 · 2025 | 10.0% of jobs#109 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryLibya: 10.1 points higher | 8.5% of jobs#162 of 178 · 2025 | 18.6% of jobs#97 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesLibya: 51.6 points higher | 19.8% of jobs#176 of 178 · 2025 | 71.4% of jobs#48 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentLibya: 1.7 points higher | 0.0% of GDP#162 of 184 · 2025 | 1.7% of GDP#105 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsLibya: 42.3 points higher | 29.4% of GDP#105 of 168 · 2025 | 71.7% of GDP#21 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingLibya: 1.12× the military spending | 3.2% of GDP#26 of 155 · 2025 | 3.6% of GDP#17 of 155 · 2023 |
| Internet usersLibya: 6.51× the share online | 13%#182 of 184 · 2024 | 82%#91 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsLibya: 2.64× the mobile subscriptions | 73 per 100#155 of 191 · 2024 | 193 per 100#4 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaChad: 30× the forest share | 3% of land#170 of 192 · 2024 | 0% of land#187 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personLibya: 61.9× the CO₂ per person | 0.14 t a year#177 of 185 · 2024 | 8.66 t a year#21 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyChad: 66.9 points higher | 70.0%#29 of 190 · 2022 | 3.1%#163 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityLibya: 64.0 points higher | 13.4%#191 of 192 · 2024 | 77.4%#150 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Chad: 2.15× the air pollution | 43.0 µg/m³#18 of 191 · 2023 | 20.0 µg/m³#84 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landChad: 20.9 points higher | 21.0% of land#78 of 191 · 2025 | 0.1% of land#187 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landChad: 3.2 points higher | 4.2% of land#135 of 190 · 2024 | 1.0% of land#171 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressLibya: 190× the water stress | 4.3%#126 of 176 · 2022 | 817.1%#4 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationChad: 5.75× the rain and snow | 322 mm#153 of 180 · 2022 | 56 mm#179 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityChad: 0.27 higher | −1.57#174 of 193 · 2025 | −1.84#182 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionChad: 0.19 higher | −1.34#177 of 193 · 2025 | −1.53#183 of 193 · 2025 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Military or transitionalin transition |
| Member of | — | OPEC |
| Capital | N'Djamena | Tripoli |
| Currency | Central African CFA franc (XAF) | Libyan dinar (LYD) |
| Official languages | French, Arabic | Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +235 | +218 |
| Region | Middle Africa, Africa | Northern 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. Chad sits at about 15° N and is stretched to 1.07× its true area; Libya at 27° N is stretched to 1.26×. 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 Chad bigger than Libya?
- No. Chad is 27% smaller than Libya. Chad covers 1,284,000 km² and Libya covers 1,759,541 km².
- How many times does Chad fit into Libya?
- About 1.4 times: Libya has 1.37× the area of Chad.
- Why do Chad and Libya look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Chad is drawn about 1.07× its true area there and Libya about 1.26×. 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, Chad or Libya?
- Chad: 21,003,705 people against 7,458,555. Density: Chad 16 per km², Libya 4.2 per km².
- Which is richer, Chad or Libya?
- By gross national income per person, Libya: $7,250 against $970 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 7.47× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Chad or Libya?
- In Libya: life expectancy at birth is 71.1 years, against 55.2 — 15.9 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Chad and Libya have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Chad: presidential republic; Libya: military or transitional.