Cuba vs Guatemala
Cuba and Guatemala are almost exactly the same size.
CubaGuatemalaCuba moved onto Guatemala · Equal-area projection
1.01×
Cuba is 1.01× the area of Guatemala.
 Cuba |  Guatemala | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 109,884 km²#104 of 194 | 108,889 km²#105 of 194 |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 4 |
| People | ||
| PopulationGuatemala: 1.71× the population | 10,937,203#88 of 194 · 2025 | 18,687,881#70 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityGuatemala: 1.72× the density | 100 / km²#89 of 194 | 172 / km²#55 of 194 |
| Urban populationCuba: 1.37× the urban share | 77%#54 of 192 · 2025 | 56%#116 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateGuatemala: 1.58× the births per woman | 1.45 per woman#146 of 192 · 2024 | 2.29 per woman#81 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthGuatemala: 1.91 points higher | −0.39%#176 of 192 · 2025 | +1.52%#67 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateGuatemala: 2.4× the birth rate | 8.6 per 1,000#161 of 192 · 2024 | 20.6 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateCuba: 2.12× the death rate | 10.4 per 1,000#29 of 192 · 2024 | 4.9 per 1,000#173 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Guatemala: 16.0 points higher | 15.0%#162 of 192 · 2025 | 31.0%#65 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Cuba: 12.0 points higher | 17.0%#46 of 192 · 2025 | 5.0%#123 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationGuatemala: 1.6 per 1,000 higher | −2.0 per 1,000#144 of 192 · 2025 | −0.4 per 1,000#95 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadCuba: 1.44× the refugees for its size | 2.69 per 1,000#35 of 190 · 2025 | 1.87 per 1,000#46 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyCuba: 5.6 years longer | 78.3 years#50 of 192 · 2024 | 72.7 years#106 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityGuatemala: 2.53× the infant mortality | 6.8 per 1,000 births#135 of 191 · 2024 | 17.2 per 1,000 births#73 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsCuba: 7.45× the doctors per person | 9.54 per 1,000#1 of 178 · 2021 | 1.28 per 1,000#100 of 178 · 2020 |
| University enrolmentCuba: 1.58× the university enrolment | 43.1%#85 of 145 · 2024 | 27.3%#103 of 145 · 2023 |
| Human Development IndexCuba: 0.100 higher | 0.762#96 of 190 · 2023 | 0.662#134 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | — | $6,360#99 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPGuatemala: 1.15× the economy | $107.35B2020 | $123.31B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | — | $15,197#109 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthGuatemala: 5.4 points higher | −1.1%#180 of 187 · 2024 | +4.3%#64 of 187 · 2025 |
| Inflation | — | +1.5%#128 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentGuatemala: 1.53× the unemployment | 1.7%#164 of 178 · 2025 | 2.6%#154 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 9.7%#46 of 149 · 2023 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 45.2#15 of 149 · 2023 |
| Jobs in agricultureGuatemala: 13.6 points higher | 15.5% of jobs#91 of 178 · 2025 | 29.1% of jobs#62 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryGuatemala: 5.8 points higher | 16.9% of jobs#115 of 178 · 2025 | 22.7% of jobs#58 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesCuba: 19.4 points higher | 67.6% of jobs#62 of 178 · 2025 | 48.2% of jobs#127 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentGuatemala: 1.4 points higher | 0.0% of GDP#162 of 184 · 2020 | 1.4% of GDP#112 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsCuba: 26.9 points higher | 42.5% of GDP#61 of 168 · 2024 | 15.6% of GDP#147 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spending | — | 0.5% of GDP#143 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersCuba: 1.17× the share online | 71%#117 of 184 · 2024 | 60%#134 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsGuatemala: 1.55× the mobile subscriptions | 73 per 100#155 of 191 · 2024 | 113 per 100#102 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaCuba: 1.05× the forest share | 35% of land#84 of 192 · 2024 | 33% of land#94 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personCuba: 1.72× the CO₂ per person | 1.91 t a year#104 of 185 · 2024 | 1.11 t a year#126 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyGuatemala: 41.2 points higher | 20.9%#103 of 190 · 2021 | 62.1%#35 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityCuba: 9.1 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 90.9%#137 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Guatemala: 3.16× the air pollution | 9.4 µg/m³#158 of 191 · 2023 | 29.7 µg/m³#50 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landGuatemala: 4.5 points higher | 15.6% of land#111 of 191 · 2025 | 20.1% of land#82 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landCuba: 10.5 points higher | 28.0% of land#34 of 190 · 2024 | 17.5% of land#61 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressCuba: 4.19× the water stress | 23.9%#62 of 176 · 2022 | 5.7%#115 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationGuatemala: 1.5× the rain and snow | 1,335 mm#68 of 180 · 2022 | 1,996 mm#33 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityCuba: 0.52 higher | +0.31#79 of 193 · 2025 | −0.21#120 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionCuba: 0.19 higher | −0.73#135 of 193 · 2025 | −0.92#147 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateGuatemala: 5.2× the homicide rate | 4.5 per 100,000#51 of 146 · 2019 | 23.4 per 100,000#15 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | One-party statecommunist state | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Havana | Guatemala City |
| Currency | Cuban peso (CUP) | Quetzal (GTQ) |
| Official languages | Spanish | Spanish |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC−5, summer time UTC−4 | UTC−6 |
| Calling code | +53 | +502 |
| Region | Caribbean, North America | Central America, North America |
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. Cuba sits at about 22° N and is stretched to 1.16× its true area; Guatemala at 16° N is stretched to 1.08×. 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 Cuba bigger than Guatemala?
- Yes. Cuba and Guatemala are almost exactly the same size. Cuba covers 109,884 km² and Guatemala covers 108,889 km².
- How many times does Guatemala fit into Cuba?
- About 1.0 times: Cuba has 1.01× the area of Guatemala.
- Why do Cuba and Guatemala look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Cuba is drawn about 1.16× its true area there and Guatemala about 1.08×. 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, Cuba or Guatemala?
- Guatemala: 18,687,881 people against 10,937,203. Density: Cuba 100 per km², Guatemala 172 per km².
- Where do people live longer, Cuba or Guatemala?
- In Cuba: life expectancy at birth is 78.3 years, against 72.7 — 5.6 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Cuba and Guatemala have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Cuba: one-party state; Guatemala: presidential republic.