China vs Vietnam
China is 28.9 times larger than Vietnam. Vietnam would fit into China about 29 times.
ChinaVietnamChina moved onto Vietnam · Equal-area projection
28.9×
China is 28.9× the area of Vietnam.
 China |  Vietnam | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaChina: 28.9× the area | 9,596,961 km²#4 of 194 | 331,690 km²#67 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 16 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationChina: 13.8× the population | 1,406,585,000#2 of 194 · 2025 | 101,598,527#16 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityVietnam: 2.09× the density | 147 / km²#62 of 194 | 306 / km²#27 of 194 |
| Urban populationChina: 1.71× the urban share | 66%#84 of 192 · 2025 | 39%#152 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateVietnam: 1.88× the births per woman | 1.01 per woman#188 of 192 · 2024 | 1.90 per woman#100 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthVietnam: 0.77 points higher | −0.17%#169 of 192 · 2025 | +0.60%#120 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateVietnam: 1.97× the birth rate | 6.8 per 1,000#184 of 192 · 2024 | 13.4 per 1,000#102 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateChina: 1.18× the death rate | 7.8 per 1,000#76 of 192 · 2024 | 6.6 per 1,000#117 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Vietnam: 7.5 points higher | 15.4%#158 of 192 · 2025 | 22.9%#104 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65China: 5.4 points higher | 14.9%#55 of 192 · 2025 | 9.5%#82 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationChina: 0.3 per 1,000 higher | −0.2 per 1,000#84 of 192 · 2025 | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadVietnam: 1.82× the refugees for its size | 0.11 per 1,000#116 of 190 · 2025 | 0.20 per 1,000#102 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyChina: 3.3 years longer | 78.0 years#53 of 192 · 2024 | 74.7 years#87 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityVietnam: 2.93× the infant mortality | 4.1 per 1,000 births#150 of 191 · 2024 | 12.0 per 1,000 births#100 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsChina: 2.8× the doctors per person | 3.11 per 1,000#56 of 178 · 2022 | 1.11 per 1,000#105 of 178 · 2021 |
| University enrolmentChina: 2.05× the university enrolment | 76.9%#33 of 145 · 2024 | 37.6%#95 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexChina: 0.031 higher | 0.797#77 of 190 · 2023 | 0.766#92 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaChina: 2.86× the income per person | $14,230#65 of 185 · 2025 | $4,970#114 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPChina: 37.9× the economy | $19.5T2025 | $514.7B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)China: 1.62× the output per person | $29,333#69 of 184 · 2025 | $18,088#100 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthVietnam: 3.0 points higher | +5.0%#45 of 187 · 2025 | +8.0%#11 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationVietnam: 3.2 points higher | +0.1%#161 of 176 · 2025 | +3.3%#81 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentChina: 3.07× the unemployment | 4.6%#102 of 178 · 2025 | 1.5%#168 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 0.0%#136 of 149 · 2022 | 1.6%#77 of 149 · 2022 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Vietnam: 0.1 higher | 36.0#63 of 149 · 2022 | 36.1#61 of 149 · 2022 |
| Jobs in agricultureVietnam: 3.3 points higher | 21.7% of jobs#81 of 178 · 2025 | 25.0% of jobs#73 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryVietnam: 3.0 points higher | 31.8% of jobs#13 of 178 · 2025 | 34.8% of jobs#5 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesChina: 6.4 points higher | 46.5% of jobs#132 of 178 · 2025 | 40.1% of jobs#147 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentVietnam: 3.9 points higher | 0.4% of GDP#150 of 184 · 2025 | 4.3% of GDP#43 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsVietnam: 77.1 points higher | 21.1% of GDP#132 of 168 · 2025 | 98.2% of GDP#8 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingVietnam: 1.25× the military spending | 1.7% of GDP#77 of 155 · 2025 | 2.1% of GDP#53 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersChina: 1.09× the share online | 92%#46 of 184 · 2025 | 84%#81 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsChina: 1.03× the mobile subscriptions | 132 per 100#49 of 191 · 2024 | 128 per 100#58 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaVietnam: 1.96× the forest share | 24% of land#112 of 192 · 2024 | 47% of land#53 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personChina: 2.18× the CO₂ per person | 9.32 t a year#19 of 185 · 2024 | 4.27 t a year#56 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyVietnam: 9.0 points higher | 15.2%#121 of 190 · 2021 | 24.2%#94 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)China: 1.29× the air pollution | 32.0 µg/m³#43 of 191 · 2023 | 24.8 µg/m³#62 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landChina: 8.0 points higher | 15.6% of land#111 of 191 · 2025 | 7.6% of land#157 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landVietnam: 9.9 points higher | 11.6% of land#86 of 190 · 2024 | 21.5% of land#51 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressChina: 2.29× the water stress | 41.5%#43 of 176 · 2022 | 18.1%#70 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationVietnam: 2.82× the rain and snow | 645 mm#122 of 180 · 2022 | 1,821 mm#40 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityVietnam: 0.10 higher | +0.02#103 of 193 · 2025 | +0.12#93 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionChina: 0.18 higher | +0.07#79 of 193 · 2025 | −0.11#85 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 0.5 per 100,000#137 of 146 · 2020 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | One-party statecommunist party-led state | One-party statecommunist party-led state |
| Member of | G20, BRICS | ASEAN |
| Capital | Beijing | Hanoi |
| Currency | Chinese yuan (renminbi) (CNY) | Vietnamese đồng (VND) |
| Official languages | Standard Chinese | Vietnamese |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+8 · UTC+6 to UTC+8, 2 time zones | UTC+7 |
| Calling code | +86 | +84 |
| Region | Eastern Asia, Asia | South-Eastern Asia, Asia |
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. China sits at about 37° N and is stretched to 1.56× its true area; Vietnam at 17° N is stretched to 1.09×. 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 China bigger than Vietnam?
- Yes. China is 28.9 times larger than Vietnam. China covers 9,596,961 km² and Vietnam covers 331,690 km².
- How many times does Vietnam fit into China?
- About 29 times: China has 28.9× the area of Vietnam.
- Why do China and Vietnam look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. China is drawn about 1.56× its true area there and Vietnam about 1.09×. 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, China or Vietnam?
- China: 1,406,585,000 people against 101,598,527. Density: China 147 per km², Vietnam 306 per km².
- Which is richer, China or Vietnam?
- By gross national income per person, China: $14,230 against $4,970 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 2.86× as much.
- Where do people live longer, China or Vietnam?
- In China: life expectancy at birth is 78.0 years, against 74.7 — 3.3 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do China and Vietnam have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: one-party state (CIA World Factbook).