Eritrea vs North Korea
North Korea and Eritrea are almost exactly the same size.
EritreaNorth KoreaEritrea moved onto North Korea · Equal-area projection
0.98×
Eritrea is 0.98× the area of North Korea. Put the other way, North Korea is 1.02× the size of Eritrea.
 Eritrea |  North Korea | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 117,600 km²#99 of 194 | 120,540 km²#96 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 3 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationNorth Korea: 7.37× the population | 3,607,003#130 of 194 · 2025 | 26,571,036#56 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityNorth Korea: 7.19× the density | 31 / km²#150 of 194 | 220 / km²#45 of 194 |
| Urban populationNorth Korea: 1.86× the urban share | 35%#161 of 192 · 2025 | 64%#91 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateEritrea: 2.07× the births per woman | 3.68 per woman#36 of 192 · 2024 | 1.78 per woman#110 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthEritrea: 1.73 points higher | +2.00%#48 of 192 · 2025 | +0.27%#145 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateEritrea: 2.22× the birth rate | 28.7 per 1,000#36 of 192 · 2024 | 12.9 per 1,000#106 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateNorth Korea: 1.65× the death rate | 6.0 per 1,000#140 of 192 · 2024 | 9.9 per 1,000#37 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Eritrea: 18.7 points higher | 37.6%#37 of 192 · 2025 | 18.9%#122 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65North Korea: 8.4 points higher | 4.3%#137 of 192 · 2025 | 12.7%#64 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationNorth Korea: 1.8 per 1,000 higher | −1.9 per 1,000#142 of 192 · 2025 | −0.1 per 1,000#78 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadEritrea: 15,384× the refugees for its size | 153.84 per 1,000#3 of 190 · 2025 | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyNorth Korea: 4.8 years longer | 68.9 years#137 of 192 · 2024 | 73.7 years#98 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityEritrea: 1.86× the infant mortality | 24.7 per 1,000 births#56 of 191 · 2024 | 13.3 per 1,000 births#92 of 191 · 2024 |
| Doctors | 0.09 per 1,000#168 of 178 · 2022 | — |
| Human Development Index | 0.503#175 of 190 · 2023 | — |
| Economy | ||
| Income group | Low income | Low income |
| UnemploymentEritrea: 1.71× the unemployment | 6.0%#71 of 178 · 2025 | 3.5%#121 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in agricultureEritrea: 1.4 points higher | 55.5% of jobs#16 of 178 · 2025 | 54.1% of jobs#20 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryNorth Korea: 9.7 points higher | 12.7% of jobs#147 of 178 · 2025 | 22.4% of jobs#62 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesEritrea: 8.3 points higher | 31.8% of jobs#163 of 178 · 2025 | 23.5% of jobs#172 of 178 · 2025 |
| Internet users | 14%#180 of 184 · 2020 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsEritrea: 2.46× the mobile subscriptions | 59 per 100#177 of 191 · 2022 | 24 per 100#190 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaNorth Korea: 5.34× the forest share | 12% of land#145 of 192 · 2024 | 64% of land#20 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personNorth Korea: 11.4× the CO₂ per person | 0.22 t a year#167 of 185 · 2024 | 2.50 t a year#94 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyEritrea: 66.0 points higher | 80.7%#15 of 190 · 2021 | 14.7%#124 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityNorth Korea: 6.1 points higher | 55.3%#169 of 192 · 2024 | 61.4%#162 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Eritrea: 1.55× the air pollution | 33.7 µg/m³#36 of 191 · 2023 | 21.8 µg/m³#73 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landNorth Korea: 2.4 points higher | 0.0% of land#188 of 191 · 2025 | 2.4% of land#178 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landNorth Korea: 13.4 points higher | 5.7% of land#124 of 190 · 2024 | 19.1% of land#56 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressNorth Korea: 2.47× the water stress | 11.2%#87 of 176 · 2022 | 27.7%#59 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationNorth Korea: 2.74× the rain and snow | 384 mm#150 of 180 · 2022 | 1,054 mm#88 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityNorth Korea: 0.68 higher | −0.60#148 of 193 · 2025 | +0.08#100 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionNorth Korea: 0.06 higher | −1.61#189 of 193 · 2025 | −1.55#186 of 193 · 2025 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | One-party stateauthoritarian | One-party statedictatorship, single-party communist state |
| Capital | Asmara | Pyongyang |
| Currency | Nakfa (ERN) | North Korean won (KPW) |
| Official languages | English, Arabic, Tigrinya | Korean, North Korean standard language |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+3 | UTC+9 |
| Calling code | +291 | +850 |
| Region | Eastern Africa, Africa | Eastern Asia, Asia |
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. Eritrea sits at about 15° N and is stretched to 1.08× its true area; North Korea at 40° N is stretched to 1.71×. That difference is why North Korea looks so much bigger than it is next to Eritrea. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Eritrea bigger than North Korea?
- No. Eritrea and North Korea are almost exactly the same size. Eritrea covers 117,600 km² and North Korea covers 120,540 km².
- How many times does Eritrea fit into North Korea?
- About 1.0 times: North Korea has 1.02× the area of Eritrea.
- Why do Eritrea and North Korea look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Eritrea is drawn about 1.08× its true area there and North Korea about 1.71×. That is why North Korea looks so much bigger than it really is next to Eritrea. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Eritrea or North Korea?
- North Korea: 26,571,036 people against 3,607,003. Density: Eritrea 31 per km², North Korea 220 per km².
- Where do people live longer, Eritrea or North Korea?
- In North Korea: life expectancy at birth is 73.7 years, against 68.9 — 4.8 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Eritrea and North Korea have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: one-party state (CIA World Factbook).