DR Congo vs Rwanda
DR Congo is 89 times larger than Rwanda. Rwanda would fit into DR Congo about 89 times.
DR CongoRwandaDR Congo moved onto Rwanda · Equal-area projection
89×
DR Congo is 89× the area of Rwanda.
 DR Congo |  Rwanda | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaDR Congo: 89× the area | 2,344,858 km²#11 of 194 | 26,338 km²#145 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 9 | 4 |
| People | ||
| PopulationDR Congo: 7.74× the population | 112,832,473#15 of 194 · 2025 | 14,569,341#77 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityRwanda: 11.5× the density | 48 / km²#136 of 194 | 553 / km²#14 of 194 |
| Urban populationDR Congo: 1.46× the urban share | 45%#138 of 192 · 2025 | 31%#170 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateDR Congo: 1.64× the births per woman | 5.98 per woman#3 of 192 · 2024 | 3.65 per woman#38 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthDR Congo: 1.03 points higher | +3.20%#10 of 192 · 2025 | +2.17%#39 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateDR Congo: 1.46× the birth rate | 40.9 per 1,000#5 of 192 · 2024 | 28.1 per 1,000#38 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateDR Congo: 1.42× the death rate | 8.4 per 1,000#66 of 192 · 2024 | 5.9 per 1,000#144 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15DR Congo: 8.9 points higher | 45.9%#5 of 192 · 2025 | 37.0%#41 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Rwanda: 0.9 points higher | 3.1%#166 of 192 · 2025 | 4.0%#142 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationRwanda: 0.6 per 1,000 higher | −0.2 per 1,000#84 of 192 · 2025 | +0.4 per 1,000#60 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadRwanda: 1.61× the refugees for its size | 10.43 per 1,000#18 of 190 · 2025 | 16.78 per 1,000#12 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyRwanda: 5.9 years longer | 62.1 years#179 of 192 · 2024 | 68.0 years#143 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityDR Congo: 1.92× the infant mortality | 56.4 per 1,000 births#9 of 191 · 2024 | 29.4 per 1,000 births#48 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsDR Congo: 2.33× the doctors per person | 0.21 per 1,000#147 of 178 · 2022 | 0.09 per 1,000#168 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentRwanda: 1.47× the university enrolment | 6.4%#137 of 145 · 2020 | 9.4%#135 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexRwanda: 0.056 higher | 0.522#168 of 190 · 2023 | 0.578#156 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaRwanda: 1.6× the income per person | $720#177 of 185 · 2025 | $1,150#165 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPDR Congo: 5.56× the economy | $91.03B2025 | $16.37B2025 |
| Income group | Low income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Rwanda: 2.17× the output per person | $1,920#179 of 184 · 2025 | $4,164#160 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthRwanda: 3.6 points higher | +5.8%#35 of 187 · 2025 | +9.4%#6 of 187 · 2025 |
| Inflation | — | +5.9%#36 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentRwanda: 2.59× the unemployment | 4.4%#108 of 178 · 2025 | 11.4%#28 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyDR Congo: 2.21× the share in extreme poverty | 85.3%#1 of 149 · 2020 | 38.6%#23 of 149 · 2023 |
| Income inequality (Gini)DR Congo: 5.3 higher | 44.7#17 of 149 · 2020 | 39.4#42 of 149 · 2023 |
| Jobs in agricultureDR Congo: 23.4 points higher | 58.5% of jobs#15 of 178 · 2025 | 35.1% of jobs#47 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryRwanda: 10.4 points higher | 8.0% of jobs#165 of 178 · 2025 | 18.4% of jobs#99 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesRwanda: 13.0 points higher | 33.5% of jobs#160 of 178 · 2025 | 46.5% of jobs#132 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentRwanda: 3.8 points higher | 2.1% of GDP#89 of 184 · 2025 | 5.9% of GDP#33 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsDR Congo: 21.8 points higher | 43.4% of GDP#59 of 168 · 2025 | 21.6% of GDP#128 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingDR Congo: 1.07× the military spending | 1.4% of GDP#93 of 155 · 2025 | 1.3% of GDP#100 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersRwanda: 1.61× the share online | 20%#173 of 184 · 2024 | 32%#164 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsRwanda: 1.58× the mobile subscriptions | 59 per 100#177 of 191 · 2024 | 93 per 100#140 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaDR Congo: 2.36× the forest share | 62% of land#25 of 192 · 2024 | 26% of land#106 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personRwanda: 2.67× the CO₂ per person | 0.06 t a year#180 of 185 · 2024 | 0.16 t a year#172 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyDR Congo: 16.4 points higher | 96.3%#1 of 190 · 2021 | 79.9%#17 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityRwanda: 49.5 points higher | 22.5%#186 of 192 · 2024 | 72.0%#153 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)About the same air pollution | 35.8 µg/m³#31 of 191 · 2023 | 36.0 µg/m³#30 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landDR Congo: 5.8 points higher | 14.9% of land#117 of 191 · 2025 | 9.1% of land#146 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landRwanda: 41.6 points higher | 7.3% of land#115 of 190 · 2024 | 48.9% of land#6 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressRwanda: 101× the water stress | 0.2%#172 of 176 · 2022 | 20.2%#69 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationDR Congo: 1.27× the rain and snow | 1,543 mm#54 of 180 · 2022 | 1,212 mm#74 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityRwanda: 2.25 higher | −2.13#189 of 193 · 2025 | +0.12#93 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionRwanda: 2.13 higher | −1.49#182 of 193 · 2025 | +0.64#50 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 3.6 per 100,000#60 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Semi-presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Kinshasa | Kigali |
| Currency | Congolese franc (CDF) | Rwandan franc (RWF) |
| Official languages | French | English, French, Swahili, Kinyarwanda |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 · UTC+1 to UTC+2, 2 time zones | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +243 | +250 |
| Region | Middle Africa, Africa | Eastern 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. DR Congo sits at about 3° S and is stretched to 1.0× its true area; Rwanda at 2° S is stretched to 1.0×. 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 DR Congo bigger than Rwanda?
- Yes. DR Congo is 89 times larger than Rwanda. DR Congo covers 2,344,858 km² and Rwanda covers 26,338 km².
- How many times does Rwanda fit into DR Congo?
- About 89 times: DR Congo has 89× the area of Rwanda.
- Why do DR Congo and Rwanda look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. DR Congo is drawn about 1.0× its true area there and Rwanda about 1.0×. 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, DR Congo or Rwanda?
- DR Congo: 112,832,473 people against 14,569,341. Density: DR Congo 48 per km², Rwanda 553 per km².
- Which is richer, DR Congo or Rwanda?
- By gross national income per person, Rwanda: $1,150 against $720 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.6× as much.
- Where do people live longer, DR Congo or Rwanda?
- In Rwanda: life expectancy at birth is 68.0 years, against 62.1 — 5.9 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do DR Congo and Rwanda have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — DR Congo: semi-presidential republic; Rwanda: presidential republic.