Colombia vs South Africa
South Africa is 7% larger than Colombia.
ColombiaSouth AfricaColombia moved onto South Africa · Equal-area projection
0.94×
Colombia is 0.94× the area of South Africa. Put the other way, South Africa is 1.07× the size of Colombia.
 Colombia |  South Africa | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSouth Africa: 1.07× the area | 1,141,748 km²#25 of 194 | 1,221,037 km²#24 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 5 | 6 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSouth Africa: 1.21× the population | 53,425,635#28 of 194 · 2025 | 64,747,319#24 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySouth Africa: 1.13× the density | 47 / km²#137 of 194 | 53 / km²#132 of 194 |
| Urban populationColombia: 1.24× the urban share | 79%#49 of 192 · 2025 | 64%#93 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSouth Africa: 1.36× the births per woman | 1.63 per woman#121 of 192 · 2024 | 2.21 per woman#86 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSouth Africa: 0.14 points higher | +1.01%#98 of 192 · 2025 | +1.15%#89 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSouth Africa: 1.39× the birth rate | 13.3 per 1,000#104 of 192 · 2024 | 18.5 per 1,000#81 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSouth Africa: 1.67× the death rate | 5.5 per 1,000#156 of 192 · 2024 | 9.2 per 1,000#50 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15South Africa: 5.7 points higher | 20.0%#115 of 192 · 2025 | 25.7%#87 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Colombia: 3.3 points higher | 10.2%#77 of 192 · 2025 | 6.9%#102 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationColombia: 0.1 per 1,000 higher | +2.4 per 1,000#35 of 192 · 2025 | +2.3 per 1,000#36 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadColombia: 74.5× the refugees for its size | 1.49 per 1,000#50 of 190 · 2025 | 0.02 per 1,000#145 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyColombia: 11.6 years longer | 77.9 years#56 of 192 · 2024 | 66.3 years#158 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySouth Africa: 2.3× the infant mortality | 10.5 per 1,000 births#109 of 191 · 2024 | 24.2 per 1,000 births#58 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsColombia: 3.22× the doctors per person | 2.54 per 1,000#74 of 178 · 2023 | 0.79 per 1,000#111 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentColombia: 2.52× the university enrolment | 59.3%#58 of 145 · 2022 | 23.5%#109 of 145 · 2023 |
| Human Development IndexColombia: 0.047 higher | 0.788#82 of 190 · 2023 | 0.741#105 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaColombia: 1.26× the income per person | $7,900#89 of 185 · 2025 | $6,270#101 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPColombia: 1.07× the economy | $457.41B2025 | $427.18B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Colombia: 1.42× the output per person | $22,640#86 of 184 · 2025 | $15,906#107 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthColombia: 1.5 points higher | +2.6%#116 of 187 · 2025 | +1.1%#152 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationColombia: 1.9 points higher | +5.1%#41 of 176 · 2025 | +3.2%#86 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentSouth Africa: 3.9× the unemployment | 8.3%#48 of 178 · 2025 | 32.4%#2 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySouth Africa: 2.05× the share in extreme poverty | 8.5%#48 of 149 · 2024 | 17.4%#39 of 149 · 2022 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Colombia: 0.3 higher | 54.4#4 of 149 · 2024 | 54.1#5 of 149 · 2022 |
| Jobs in agricultureColombia: 8.8 points higher | 14.2% of jobs#94 of 178 · 2025 | 5.4% of jobs#128 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySouth Africa: 0.8 points higher | 20.0% of jobs#77 of 178 · 2025 | 20.8% of jobs#71 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesSouth Africa: 8.0 points higher | 65.8% of jobs#67 of 178 · 2025 | 73.8% of jobs#35 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentColombia: 3.0 points higher | 2.5% of GDP#77 of 184 · 2025 | -0.5% of GDP#171 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsSouth Africa: 16.4 points higher | 15.0% of GDP#149 of 168 · 2025 | 31.4% of GDP#98 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingColombia: 4.32× the military spending | 3.2% of GDP#25 of 155 · 2025 | 0.7% of GDP#132 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersAbout the same share online | 79%#100 of 184 · 2024 | 78%#101 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsAbout as many mobile subscriptions | 174 per 100#11 of 191 · 2024 | 179 per 100#7 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaColombia: 2.86× the forest share | 54% of land#39 of 192 · 2024 | 19% of land#123 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personSouth Africa: 3.82× the CO₂ per person | 1.80 t a year#107 of 185 · 2024 | 6.88 t a year#33 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyColombia: 20.0 points higher | 29.7%#81 of 190 · 2021 | 9.7%#143 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityColombia: 8.7 points higher | 98.9%#114 of 192 · 2024 | 90.2%#138 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)South Africa: 1.51× the air pollution | 18.4 µg/m³#97 of 191 · 2023 | 27.7 µg/m³#55 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landColombia: 7.6 points higher | 17.2% of land#97 of 191 · 2025 | 9.6% of land#143 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSouth Africa: 7.2 points higher | 2.7% of land#153 of 190 · 2024 | 9.9% of land#102 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSouth Africa: 18.8× the water stress | 3.6%#133 of 176 · 2022 | 67.6%#26 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationColombia: 6.55× the rain and snow | 3,240 mm#1 of 180 · 2022 | 495 mm#143 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilitySouth Africa: 0.57 higher | −0.95#167 of 193 · 2025 | −0.38#129 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionSouth Africa: 0.18 higher | −0.31#104 of 193 · 2025 | −0.13#87 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateSouth Africa: 1.76× the homicide rate | 24.9 per 100,000#13 of 146 · 2023 | 43.7 per 100,000#5 of 146 · 2022 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Parliamentary republic |
| Member of | OECD | G20, BRICS |
| Capital | Bogota | Pretoria |
| Currency | Colombian peso (COP) | South African rand (ZAR) |
| Official languages | Spanish | English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa, Sesotho, Tswana, Swazi, Tsonga, Venda, Northern Sotho, Southern Ndebele, South African Sign Language |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC−5 | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +57 | +27 |
| Region | South America | Southern 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. Colombia sits at about 4° N and is stretched to 1.0× its true area; South Africa at 29° S is stretched to 1.31×. 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 Colombia bigger than South Africa?
- No. Colombia is 6% smaller than South Africa. Colombia covers 1,141,748 km² and South Africa covers 1,221,037 km².
- How many times does Colombia fit into South Africa?
- About 1.1 times: South Africa has 1.07× the area of Colombia.
- Why do Colombia and South Africa look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Colombia is drawn about 1.0× its true area there and South Africa about 1.31×. 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, Colombia or South Africa?
- South Africa: 64,747,319 people against 53,425,635. Density: Colombia 47 per km², South Africa 53 per km².
- Which is richer, Colombia or South Africa?
- By gross national income per person, Colombia: $7,900 against $6,270 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.26× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Colombia or South Africa?
- In Colombia: life expectancy at birth is 77.9 years, against 66.3 — 11.6 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Colombia and South Africa have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Colombia: presidential republic; South Africa: parliamentary republic.