Congo vs Norway
Norway is 13% larger than Congo.
CongoNorwayCongo moved onto Norway · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
0.89×
Congo is 0.89× the area of Norway. Put the other way, Norway is 1.13× the size of Congo.
 Congo |  Norway | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaNorway: 1.13× the area | 342,000 km²#65 of 194 | 385,207 km²#61 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 5 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationCongo: 1.16× the population | 6,484,437#110 of 194 · 2025 | 5,610,870#118 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityCongo: 1.3× the density | 19 / km²#169 of 194 | 15 / km²#179 of 194 |
| Urban populationNorway: 1.3× the urban share | 64%#92 of 192 · 2025 | 84%#34 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateCongo: 2.83× the births per woman | 4.11 per woman#23 of 192 · 2024 | 1.45 per woman#146 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthCongo: 1.67 points higher | +2.36%#31 of 192 · 2025 | +0.69%#115 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateCongo: 3.13× the birth rate | 30.4 per 1,000#28 of 192 · 2024 | 9.7 per 1,000#147 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateNorway: 1.27× the death rate | 6.2 per 1,000#129 of 192 · 2024 | 7.9 per 1,000#72 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Congo: 24.0 points higher | 39.9%#26 of 192 · 2025 | 15.9%#151 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Norway: 16.0 points higher | 3.1%#166 of 192 · 2025 | 19.1%#34 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationNorway: 5.8 per 1,000 higher | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 | +5.3 per 1,000#19 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroad | 2.03 per 1,000#42 of 190 · 2025 | 0.00 per 1,000#174 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyNorway: 17.2 years longer | 66.0 years#163 of 192 · 2024 | 83.2 years#13 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityCongo: 13.5× the infant mortality | 27.0 per 1,000 births#54 of 191 · 2024 | 2.0 per 1,000 births#182 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsNorway: 29.2× the doctors per person | 0.17 per 1,000#155 of 178 · 2022 | 4.97 per 1,000#11 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolmentNorway: 9.18× the university enrolment | 10.4%#130 of 145 · 2023 | 95.5%#10 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexNorway: 0.321 higher | 0.649#135 of 190 · 2023 | 0.970#2 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaNorway: 42.7× the income per person | $2,280#144 of 185 · 2025 | $97,310#2 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPNorway: 32.5× the economy | $16.31B2025 | $530.76B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Norway: 14.4× the output per person | $7,248#140 of 184 · 2025 | $104,044#5 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthCongo: 2.0 points higher | +3.1%#96 of 187 · 2025 | +1.1%#152 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationNorway: 0.6 points higher | +2.4%#103 of 176 · 2025 | +3.0%#90 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentCongo: 4.33× the unemployment | 19.9%#6 of 178 · 2025 | 4.6%#102 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 0.2%#121 of 149 · 2023 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 26.5#139 of 149 · 2023 |
| Jobs in agricultureCongo: 33.9 points higher | 36.4% of jobs#44 of 178 · 2025 | 2.5% of jobs#152 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryCongo: 1.7 points higher | 19.5% of jobs#84 of 178 · 2025 | 17.8% of jobs#108 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesNorway: 35.5 points higher | 44.2% of jobs#138 of 178 · 2025 | 79.7% of jobs#15 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentCongo: 5.0 points higher | 3.7% of GDP#52 of 184 · 2025 | -1.3% of GDP#174 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsCongo: 2.6 points higher | 48.0% of GDP#49 of 168 · 2025 | 45.4% of GDP#55 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingNorway: 2.5× the military spending | 1.3% of GDP#97 of 155 · 2025 | 3.3% of GDP#22 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersNorway: 2.09× the share online | 47%#146 of 184 · 2024 | 99%#7 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsNorway: 1.14× the mobile subscriptions | 96 per 100#135 of 191 · 2024 | 109 per 100#112 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaCongo: 1.93× the forest share | 64% of land#21 of 192 · 2024 | 33% of land#93 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personNorway: 5.36× the CO₂ per person | 1.34 t a year#118 of 185 · 2024 | 7.18 t a year#30 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyCongo: 10.0 points higher | 71.4%#26 of 190 · 2021 | 61.4%#36 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityNorway: 47.0 points higher | 53.0%#175 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Congo: 6.64× the air pollution | 36.5 µg/m³#29 of 191 · 2023 | 5.5 µg/m³#180 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landCongo: 18.8 points higher | 36.6% of land#21 of 191 · 2025 | 17.8% of land#94 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landNorway: 0.6 points higher | 1.6% of land#167 of 190 · 2024 | 2.2% of land#159 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stress | 0.0%#176 of 176 · 2022 | 2.0%#148 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationCongo: 1.16× the rain and snow | 1,646 mm#49 of 180 · 2022 | 1,414 mm#64 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityNorway: 1.57 higher | −0.49#138 of 193 · 2025 | +1.08#29 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionNorway: 3.35 higher | −1.42#180 of 193 · 2025 | +1.93#6 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 0.7 per 100,000#123 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Constitutional monarchyparliamentary constitutional monarchy |
| Member of | OPEC | NATO, Schengen Area, OECD |
| Capital | Brazzaville | Oslo |
| Currency | Central African CFA franc (XAF) | Norwegian krone (NOK) |
| Official languages | French | Norwegian, Sámi, Nynorsk, Bokmål |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC+1, summer time UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +242 | +47 |
| Region | Middle Africa, Africa | Northern Europe, Europe |
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. Congo sits at about 1° S and is stretched to 1.0× its true area; Norway at 66° N is stretched to 6.22×. That difference is why Norway looks so much bigger than it is next to Congo. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Congo bigger than Norway?
- No. Congo is 11% smaller than Norway. Congo covers 342,000 km² and Norway covers 385,207 km².
- How many times does Congo fit into Norway?
- About 1.1 times: Norway has 1.13× the area of Congo.
- Why do Congo and Norway look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Congo is drawn about 1.0× its true area there and Norway about 6.22×. That is why Norway looks so much bigger than it really is next to Congo. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Congo or Norway?
- Congo: 6,484,437 people against 5,610,870. Density: Congo 19 per km², Norway 15 per km².
- Which is richer, Congo or Norway?
- By gross national income per person, Norway: $97,310 against $2,280 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 42.7× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Congo or Norway?
- In Norway: life expectancy at birth is 83.2 years, against 66.0 — 17.2 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Congo and Norway have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Congo: presidential republic; Norway: constitutional monarchy.