Egypt vs Mauritania
Mauritania and Egypt are almost exactly the same size.
EgyptMauritaniaEgypt moved onto Mauritania · Equal-area projection
0.98×
Egypt is 0.98× the area of Mauritania. Put the other way, Mauritania is 1.02× the size of Egypt.
 Egypt |  Mauritania | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 1,010,408 km²#29 of 194 | 1,030,700 km²#28 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 4 |
| People | ||
| PopulationEgypt: 22.3× the population | 118,365,995#13 of 194 · 2025 | 5,315,065#124 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityEgypt: 22.7× the density | 117 / km²#76 of 194 | 5.2 / km²#185 of 194 |
| Urban populationMauritania: 1.43× the urban share | 43%#144 of 192 · 2025 | 62%#102 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateMauritania: 1.69× the births per woman | 2.74 per woman#58 of 192 · 2024 | 4.63 per woman#11 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthMauritania: 1.22 points higher | +1.56%#64 of 192 · 2025 | +2.78%#18 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateMauritania: 1.63× the birth rate | 20.9 per 1,000#64 of 192 · 2024 | 34.0 per 1,000#13 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateAbout the same death rate | 5.5 per 1,000#156 of 192 · 2024 | 5.4 per 1,000#161 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Mauritania: 10.8 points higher | 31.6%#60 of 192 · 2025 | 42.4%#12 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Egypt: 2.1 points higher | 5.3%#119 of 192 · 2025 | 3.2%#161 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationEgypt: 0.4 per 1,000 higher | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 | −0.9 per 1,000#114 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadMauritania: 41.3× the refugees for its size | 0.20 per 1,000#102 of 190 · 2025 | 8.26 per 1,000#22 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyEgypt: 3.1 years longer | 71.8 years#117 of 192 · 2024 | 68.7 years#139 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityMauritania: 1.45× the infant mortality | 20.8 per 1,000 births#67 of 191 · 2024 | 30.2 per 1,000 births#47 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsEgypt: 2.58× the doctors per person | 0.67 per 1,000#121 of 178 · 2020 | 0.26 per 1,000#141 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentEgypt: 6.33× the university enrolment | 38.0%#93 of 145 · 2025 | 6.0%#140 of 145 · 2020 |
| Human Development IndexEgypt: 0.191 higher | 0.754#99 of 190 · 2023 | 0.563#160 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaEgypt: 1.48× the income per person | $3,260#133 of 185 · 2025 | $2,210#145 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPEgypt: 31.3× the economy | $365.26B2025 | $11.68B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Egypt: 2.63× the output per person | $20,204#92 of 184 · 2025 | $7,676#139 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthEgypt: 0.4 points higher | +4.4%#58 of 187 · 2025 | +4.0%#69 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationEgypt: 12.6 points higher | +14.1%#15 of 176 · 2025 | +1.5%#128 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentMauritania: 1.51× the unemployment | 6.8%#60 of 178 · 2025 | 10.3%#34 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyMauritania: 7.29× the share in extreme poverty | 1.4%#79 of 149 · 2021 | 10.2%#45 of 149 · 2019 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Mauritania: 3.5 higher | 28.5#129 of 149 · 2021 | 32.0#103 of 149 · 2019 |
| Jobs in agricultureMauritania: 14.6 points higher | 17.5% of jobs#85 of 178 · 2025 | 32.1% of jobs#55 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryEgypt: 14.4 points higher | 29.4% of jobs#22 of 178 · 2025 | 15.0% of jobs#137 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesEgypt: 0.3 points higher | 53.1% of jobs#103 of 178 · 2025 | 52.8% of jobs#105 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentMauritania: 1.2 points higher | 4.2% of GDP#46 of 184 · 2025 | 5.4% of GDP#34 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsMauritania: 20.1 points higher | 19.8% of GDP#134 of 168 · 2025 | 39.9% of GDP#73 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingMauritania: 4.51× the military spending | 0.6% of GDP#137 of 155 · 2025 | 2.8% of GDP#37 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersEgypt: 1.63× the share online | 75%#111 of 184 · 2024 | 46%#149 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsEgypt: 1.05× the mobile subscriptions | 97 per 100#133 of 191 · 2024 | 92 per 100#141 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest area | 0% of land#189 of 192 · 2024 | 1% of land#179 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personEgypt: 2.58× the CO₂ per person | 2.50 t a year#94 of 185 · 2024 | 0.97 t a year#129 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyMauritania: 13.5 points higher | 6.1%#156 of 190 · 2021 | 19.6%#108 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityEgypt: 47.8 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 52.2%#177 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Mauritania: 1.08× the air pollution | 43.1 µg/m³#17 of 191 · 2023 | 46.5 µg/m³#16 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landEgypt: 12.5 points higher | 13.1% of land#129 of 191 · 2025 | 0.6% of land#186 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landEgypt: 2.9 points higher | 3.3% of land#146 of 190 · 2024 | 0.4% of land#183 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressEgypt: 10.7× the water stress | 141.2%#8 of 176 · 2022 | 13.2%#78 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationMauritania: 5.11× the rain and snow | 18 mm#180 of 180 · 2022 | 92 mm#173 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityMauritania: 0.24 higher | −0.89#163 of 193 · 2025 | −0.65#152 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionEgypt: 0.25 higher | −0.70#133 of 193 · 2025 | −0.95#151 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateEgypt: 1.3× the homicide rate | 1.3 per 100,000#92 of 146 · 2017 | 1.0 per 100,000#107 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Member of | BRICS | — |
| Capital | Cairo | Nouakchott |
| Currency | Egyptian pound (EGP) | Mauritanian ouguiya (MRU) |
| Official languages | Arabic | Arabic |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+2, summer time UTC+3 | UTC |
| Calling code | +20 | +222 |
| Region | Northern Africa, Africa | Western 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. Egypt sits at about 26° N and is stretched to 1.25× its true area; Mauritania at 20° N is stretched to 1.14×. 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 Egypt bigger than Mauritania?
- No. Egypt and Mauritania are almost exactly the same size. Egypt covers 1,010,408 km² and Mauritania covers 1,030,700 km².
- How many times does Egypt fit into Mauritania?
- About 1.0 times: Mauritania has 1.02× the area of Egypt.
- Why do Egypt and Mauritania look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Egypt is drawn about 1.25× its true area there and Mauritania about 1.14×. 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, Egypt or Mauritania?
- Egypt: 118,365,995 people against 5,315,065. Density: Egypt 117 per km², Mauritania 5.2 per km².
- Which is richer, Egypt or Mauritania?
- By gross national income per person, Egypt: $3,260 against $2,210 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.48× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Egypt or Mauritania?
- In Egypt: life expectancy at birth is 71.8 years, against 68.7 — 3.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Egypt and Mauritania have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).