Croatia vs Serbia
Serbia is 56% larger than Croatia. Croatia would fit into Serbia about 1.6 times.
CroatiaSerbiaCroatia moved onto Serbia · Equal-area projection
0.64×
Croatia is 0.64× the area of Serbia. Put the other way, Serbia is 1.56× the size of Croatia.
 Croatia |  Serbia | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSerbia: 1.56× the area | 56,594 km²#124 of 194 | 88,499 km²#111 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 5 | 7 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSerbia: 1.69× the population | 3,876,200#129 of 194 · 2025 | 6,549,143#109 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySerbia: 1.08× the density | 68 / km²#118 of 194 | 74 / km²#112 of 194 |
| Urban populationSerbia: 1.08× the urban share | 58%#115 of 192 · 2025 | 63%#100 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSerbia: 1.12× the births per woman | 1.46 per woman#144 of 192 · 2024 | 1.64 per woman#120 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthCroatia: 0.83 points higher | +0.26%#146 of 192 · 2025 | −0.57%#183 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSerbia: 1.11× the birth rate | 8.3 per 1,000#166 of 192 · 2024 | 9.2 per 1,000#154 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSerbia: 1.13× the death rate | 13.2 per 1,000#10 of 192 · 2024 | 14.9 per 1,000#3 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Serbia: 0.6 points higher | 13.7%#180 of 192 · 2025 | 14.3%#174 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Croatia: 0.5 points higher | 23.6%#8 of 192 · 2025 | 23.1%#9 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationCroatia: 1.1 per 1,000 higher | −0.9 per 1,000#114 of 192 · 2025 | −2.0 per 1,000#144 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadAbout as many refugees for its size | 4.44 per 1,000#30 of 190 · 2025 | 4.53 per 1,000#29 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyCroatia: 2.9 years longer | 78.9 years#46 of 192 · 2024 | 76.0 years#78 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySerbia: 1.12× the infant mortality | 4.1 per 1,000 births#150 of 191 · 2024 | 4.6 per 1,000 births#148 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsCroatia: 1.26× the doctors per person | 3.91 per 1,000#32 of 178 · 2022 | 3.10 per 1,000#57 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentCroatia: 1.15× the university enrolment | 81.2%#21 of 145 · 2023 | 70.6%#44 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexCroatia: 0.056 higher | 0.889#40 of 190 · 2023 | 0.833#61 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaCroatia: 1.88× the income per person | $25,360#45 of 185 · 2025 | $13,480#70 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPCroatia: 1.05× the economy | $105.06B2025 | $99.95B2025 |
| Income group | High income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Croatia: 1.5× the output per person | $50,946#42 of 184 · 2025 | $33,910#64 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthCroatia: 1.4 points higher | +3.4%#89 of 187 · 2025 | +2.0%#132 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationSerbia: 0.2 points higher | +3.7%#68 of 176 · 2025 | +3.9%#60 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentSerbia: 1.42× the unemployment | 5.0%#93 of 178 · 2025 | 7.1%#56 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySerbia: 3.67× the share in extreme poverty | 0.3%#116 of 149 · 2023 | 1.1%#82 of 149 · 2023 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Serbia: 2.7 higher | 30.1#118 of 149 · 2023 | 32.8#97 of 149 · 2023 |
| Jobs in agricultureSerbia: 13.7 points higher | 4.3% of jobs#136 of 178 · 2025 | 18.0% of jobs#83 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySerbia: 0.7 points higher | 26.4% of jobs#31 of 178 · 2025 | 27.1% of jobs#27 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesCroatia: 14.4 points higher | 69.3% of jobs#55 of 178 · 2025 | 54.9% of jobs#99 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentSerbia: 1.1 points higher | 2.8% of GDP#68 of 184 · 2025 | 3.9% of GDP#49 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsSerbia: 6.3 points higher | 48.0% of GDP#49 of 168 · 2025 | 54.3% of GDP#42 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingSerbia: 1.37× the military spending | 2.0% of GDP#63 of 155 · 2025 | 2.8% of GDP#36 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersSerbia: 1.05× the share online | 84%#84 of 184 · 2024 | 88%#69 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsAbout as many mobile subscriptions | 122 per 100#76 of 191 · 2024 | 124 per 100#71 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSerbia: 1.13× the forest share | 35% of land#85 of 192 · 2024 | 39% of land#68 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per person | 4.83 t a year#50 of 185 · 2024 | — |
| Renewable energyCroatia: 6.9 points higher | 34.1%#73 of 190 · 2021 | 27.2%#89 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Serbia: 1.22× the air pollution | 15.8 µg/m³#110 of 191 · 2023 | 19.3 µg/m³#89 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landCroatia: 24.4 points higher | 38.4% of land#18 of 191 · 2025 | 14.0% of land#123 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSerbia: 13.8 points higher | 15.2% of land#74 of 190 · 2024 | 29.0% of land#31 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSerbia: 3.8× the water stress | 1.5%#154 of 176 · 2022 | 5.7%#115 of 176 · 2022 |
| Precipitation | 1,113 mm#84 of 180 · 2022 | — |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityCroatia: 1.00 higher | +0.68#58 of 193 · 2025 | −0.32#124 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionCroatia: 0.73 higher | +0.13#75 of 193 · 2025 | −0.60#128 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateSerbia: 1.86× the homicide rate | 0.7 per 100,000#123 of 146 · 2023 | 1.3 per 100,000#92 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republic | Parliamentary republic |
| Member of | EU, NATO, Euro area, Schengen Area | — |
| Capital | Zagreb | Belgrade |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) | Serbian dinar (RSD) |
| Official languages | Croatian | Serbian |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1, summer time UTC+2 | UTC+1, summer time UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +385 | +381 |
| Region | Southern Europe, Europe | Southern 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. Croatia sits at about 45° N and is stretched to 2.01× its true area; Serbia at 44° N is stretched to 1.95×. 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 Croatia bigger than Serbia?
- No. Croatia is 36% smaller than Serbia. Croatia covers 56,594 km² and Serbia covers 88,499 km².
- How many times does Croatia fit into Serbia?
- About 1.6 times: Serbia has 1.56× the area of Croatia.
- Why do Croatia and Serbia look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Croatia is drawn about 2.01× its true area there and Serbia about 1.95×. 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, Croatia or Serbia?
- Serbia: 6,549,143 people against 3,876,200. Density: Croatia 68 per km², Serbia 74 per km².
- Which is richer, Croatia or Serbia?
- By gross national income per person, Croatia: $25,360 against $13,480 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.88× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Croatia or Serbia?
- In Croatia: life expectancy at birth is 78.9 years, against 76.0 — 2.9 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Croatia and Serbia have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: parliamentary republic (CIA World Factbook).