DR Congo vs United States
United States is 4.19 times larger than DR Congo. DR Congo would fit into United States about 4.2 times.
DR CongoUnited StatesDR Congo moved onto United States · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
0.24×
DR Congo is 0.24× the area of United States. Put the other way, United States is 4.19× the size of DR Congo.
 DR Congo |  United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaUnited States: 4.19× the area | 2,344,858 km²#11 of 194 | 9,826,675 km²#3 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 9 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationUnited States: 3.03× the population | 112,832,473#15 of 194 · 2025 | 341,784,857#3 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityDR Congo: 1.38× the density | 48 / km²#136 of 194 | 35 / km²#145 of 194 |
| Urban populationUnited States: 1.78× the urban share | 45%#138 of 192 · 2025 | 80%#41 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateDR Congo: 3.67× the births per woman | 5.98 per woman#3 of 192 · 2024 | 1.63 per woman#121 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthDR Congo: 2.68 points higher | +3.20%#10 of 192 · 2025 | +0.52%#125 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateDR Congo: 3.86× the birth rate | 40.9 per 1,000#5 of 192 · 2024 | 10.6 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateUnited States: 1.07× the death rate | 8.4 per 1,000#66 of 192 · 2024 | 9.0 per 1,000#52 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15DR Congo: 28.8 points higher | 45.9%#5 of 192 · 2025 | 17.1%#140 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65United States: 15.3 points higher | 3.1%#166 of 192 · 2025 | 18.4%#38 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationUnited States: 3.8 per 1,000 higher | −0.2 per 1,000#84 of 192 · 2025 | +3.6 per 1,000#26 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadDR Congo: 1,043× the refugees for its size | 10.43 per 1,000#18 of 190 · 2025 | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyUnited States: 16.8 years longer | 62.1 years#179 of 192 · 2024 | 78.9 years#46 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityDR Congo: 10.3× the infant mortality | 56.4 per 1,000 births#9 of 191 · 2024 | 5.5 per 1,000 births#139 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsUnited States: 17.5× the doctors per person | 0.21 per 1,000#147 of 178 · 2022 | 3.68 per 1,000#39 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentUnited States: 12.4× the university enrolment | 6.4%#137 of 145 · 2020 | 79.4%#27 of 145 · 2022 |
| Human Development IndexUnited States: 0.416 higher | 0.522#168 of 190 · 2023 | 0.938#16 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaUnited States: 123× the income per person | $720#177 of 185 · 2025 | $88,810#5 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPUnited States: 338× the economy | $91.03B2025 | $30.77T2025 |
| Income group | Low income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)United States: 46.9× the output per person | $1,920#179 of 184 · 2025 | $90,027#9 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthDR Congo: 3.6 points higher | +5.8%#35 of 187 · 2025 | +2.2%#126 of 187 · 2025 |
| Inflation | — | +2.9%#92 of 176 · 2024 |
| UnemploymentDR Congo: 1.05× the unemployment | 4.4%#108 of 178 · 2025 | 4.2%#110 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyDR Congo: 77.5× the share in extreme poverty | 85.3%#1 of 149 · 2020 | 1.1%#82 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini)DR Congo: 2.9 higher | 44.7#17 of 149 · 2020 | 41.8#30 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureDR Congo: 57.0 points higher | 58.5% of jobs#15 of 178 · 2025 | 1.5% of jobs#164 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryUnited States: 10.9 points higher | 8.0% of jobs#165 of 178 · 2025 | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesUnited States: 46.1 points higher | 33.5% of jobs#160 of 178 · 2025 | 79.6% of jobs#16 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentDR Congo: 1.1 points higher | 2.1% of GDP#89 of 184 · 2025 | 1.0% of GDP#126 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsDR Congo: 32.4 points higher | 43.4% of GDP#59 of 168 · 2025 | 11.0% of GDP#159 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spendingUnited States: 2.26× the military spending | 1.4% of GDP#93 of 155 · 2025 | 3.1% of GDP#27 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersUnited States: 4.81× the share online | 20%#173 of 184 · 2024 | 95%#27 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsUnited States: 1.92× the mobile subscriptions | 59 per 100#177 of 191 · 2024 | 113 per 100#102 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaDR Congo: 1.82× the forest share | 62% of land#25 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#92 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personUnited States: 227× the CO₂ per person | 0.06 t a year#180 of 185 · 2024 | 13.6 t a year#13 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyDR Congo: 85.4 points higher | 96.3%#1 of 190 · 2021 | 10.9%#139 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityUnited States: 77.5 points higher | 22.5%#186 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)DR Congo: 5.11× the air pollution | 35.8 µg/m³#31 of 191 · 2023 | 7.0 µg/m³#173 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landDR Congo: 2.0 points higher | 14.9% of land#117 of 191 · 2025 | 12.9% of land#131 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landUnited States: 9.3 points higher | 7.3% of land#115 of 190 · 2024 | 16.6% of land#64 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressUnited States: 141× the water stress | 0.2%#172 of 176 · 2022 | 28.2%#57 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationDR Congo: 2.16× the rain and snow | 1,543 mm#54 of 180 · 2022 | 715 mm#111 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityUnited States: 1.83 higher | −2.13#189 of 193 · 2025 | −0.30#122 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionUnited States: 2.36 higher | −1.49#182 of 193 · 2025 | +0.87#39 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 5.8 per 100,000#46 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Semi-presidential republic | Presidential republicconstitutional federal republic |
| Member of | — | NATO, OECD, G7, G20 |
| Capital | Kinshasa | Washington D.C. |
| Currency | Congolese franc (CDF) | United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | French | English |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 · UTC+1 to UTC+2, 2 time zones | UTC−5, summer time UTC−4 · UTC−10 to UTC−5, 6 time zones |
| Calling code | +243 | +1 |
| Region | Middle Africa, Africa | Northern 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. DR Congo sits at about 3° S and is stretched to 1.0× its true area; United States at 45° N is stretched to 1.98×. That difference is why United States looks so much bigger than it is next to DR Congo. 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 United States?
- No. DR Congo is 4.19 times smaller than United States. DR Congo covers 2,344,858 km² and United States covers 9,826,675 km².
- How many times does DR Congo fit into United States?
- About 4.2 times: United States has 4.19× the area of DR Congo.
- Why do DR Congo and United States 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 United States about 1.98×. That is why United States looks so much bigger than it really is next to DR Congo. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, DR Congo or United States?
- United States: 341,784,857 people against 112,832,473. Density: DR Congo 48 per km², United States 35 per km².
- Which is richer, DR Congo or United States?
- By gross national income per person, United States: $88,810 against $720 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 123× as much.
- Where do people live longer, DR Congo or United States?
- In United States: life expectancy at birth is 78.9 years, against 62.1 — 16.8 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do DR Congo and United States have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — DR Congo: semi-presidential republic; United States: presidential republic.