Ethiopia vs Kenya
Ethiopia is 90% larger than Kenya. Kenya would fit into Ethiopia about 1.9 times.
EthiopiaKenyaEthiopia moved onto Kenya · Equal-area projection
1.9×
Ethiopia is 1.9× the area of Kenya.
 Ethiopia |  Kenya | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaEthiopia: 1.9× the area | 1,104,300 km²#26 of 194 | 581,309 km²#48 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 5 |
| People | ||
| PopulationEthiopia: 2.35× the population | 135,472,051#10 of 194 · 2025 | 57,532,493#26 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityEthiopia: 1.24× the density | 123 / km²#73 of 194 | 99 / km²#90 of 194 |
| Urban populationKenya: 1.34× the urban share | 24%#182 of 192 · 2025 | 32%#165 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateEthiopia: 1.23× the births per woman | 3.91 per woman#26 of 192 · 2024 | 3.17 per woman#50 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthEthiopia: 0.62 points higher | +2.55%#24 of 192 · 2025 | +1.93%#50 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateEthiopia: 1.17× the birth rate | 31.5 per 1,000#24 of 192 · 2024 | 27.0 per 1,000#43 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateKenya: 1.22× the death rate | 5.9 per 1,000#144 of 192 · 2024 | 7.2 per 1,000#94 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Ethiopia: 2.5 points higher | 38.8%#30 of 192 · 2025 | 36.3%#45 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Ethiopia: 0.3 points higher | 3.3%#158 of 192 · 2025 | 3.0%#171 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationEthiopia: 0.7 per 1,000 higher | +0.2 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2025 | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadEthiopia: 5.26× the refugees for its size | 1.21 per 1,000#54 of 190 · 2025 | 0.23 per 1,000#96 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyEthiopia: 3.8 years longer | 67.6 years#146 of 192 · 2024 | 63.8 years#171 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityAbout the same infant mortality | 34.5 per 1,000 births#36 of 191 · 2024 | 34.2 per 1,000 births#37 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsKenya: 2.07× the doctors per person | 0.14 per 1,000#161 of 178 · 2023 | 0.29 per 1,000#138 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolment | — | 10.4%#130 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexKenya: 0.131 higher | 0.497#177 of 190 · 2023 | 0.628#140 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaKenya: 1.98× the income per person | $1,110#168 of 185 · 2025 | $2,200#146 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPKenya: 1.08× the economy | $126.36B2025 | $135.94B2025 |
| Income group | Low income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Kenya: 1.94× the output per person | $3,622#165 of 184 · 2025 | $7,016#141 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthEthiopia: 5.2 points higher | +9.8%#5 of 187 · 2025 | +4.6%#51 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationEthiopia: 9.1 points higher | +13.2%#17 of 176 · 2025 | +4.1%#52 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentKenya: 1.64× the unemployment | 3.3%#127 of 178 · 2025 | 5.4%#80 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyKenya: 1.18× the share in extreme poverty | 38.6%#23 of 149 · 2021 | 45.5%#13 of 149 · 2022 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Kenya: 7.4 higher | 31.1#110 of 149 · 2021 | 38.5#47 of 149 · 2022 |
| Jobs in agricultureEthiopia: 14.3 points higher | 60.1% of jobs#14 of 178 · 2025 | 45.8% of jobs#28 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryKenya: 6.1 points higher | 6.4% of jobs#174 of 178 · 2025 | 12.5% of jobs#150 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesKenya: 8.3 points higher | 33.4% of jobs#161 of 178 · 2025 | 41.7% of jobs#143 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentEthiopia: 2.2 points higher | 3.0% of GDP#65 of 184 · 2025 | 0.8% of GDP#137 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsKenya: 2.5 points higher | 13.3% of GDP#153 of 168 · 2025 | 15.8% of GDP#144 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingKenya: 2.18× the military spending | 0.5% of GDP#144 of 155 · 2025 | 1.1% of GDP#108 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersKenya: 1.6× the share online | 22%#171 of 184 · 2024 | 35%#158 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsKenya: 1.94× the mobile subscriptions | 65 per 100#167 of 191 · 2024 | 126 per 100#64 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaEthiopia: 3.61× the forest share | 24% of land#113 of 192 · 2024 | 7% of land#161 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personKenya: 2.53× the CO₂ per person | 0.15 t a year#174 of 185 · 2024 | 0.38 t a year#155 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyEthiopia: 22.9 points higher | 90.6%#7 of 190 · 2021 | 67.7%#30 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityKenya: 20.4 points higher | 56.6%#167 of 192 · 2024 | 77.0%#151 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Ethiopia: 1.17× the air pollution | 23.8 µg/m³#63 of 191 · 2023 | 20.3 µg/m³#79 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landEthiopia: 3.1 points higher | 17.0% of land#100 of 191 · 2025 | 13.9% of land#124 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landEthiopia: 3.1 points higher | 14.6% of land#75 of 190 · 2024 | 11.5% of land#87 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressAbout the same water stress | 32.3%#52 of 176 · 2022 | 33.2%#50 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationEthiopia: 1.35× the rain and snow | 848 mm#101 of 180 · 2022 | 630 mm#125 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityKenya: 0.73 higher | −1.85#183 of 193 · 2025 | −1.12#168 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionEthiopia: 0.49 higher | −0.37#108 of 193 · 2025 | −0.86#145 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 4.9 per 100,000#49 of 146 · 2022 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republicfederal parliamentary republic | Presidential republic |
| Member of | BRICS | — |
| Capital | Addis Ababa | Nairobi |
| Currency | Ethiopian birr (ETB) | Kenyan shilling (KES) |
| Official languages | Amharic | English, Swahili |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+3 | UTC+3 |
| Calling code | +251 | +254 |
| Region | Eastern 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. Ethiopia sits at about 9° N and is stretched to 1.02× its true area; Kenya at 1° N 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 Ethiopia bigger than Kenya?
- Yes. Ethiopia is 90% larger than Kenya. Ethiopia covers 1,104,300 km² and Kenya covers 581,309 km².
- How many times does Kenya fit into Ethiopia?
- About 1.9 times: Ethiopia has 1.9× the area of Kenya.
- Why do Ethiopia and Kenya look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Ethiopia is drawn about 1.02× its true area there and Kenya 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, Ethiopia or Kenya?
- Ethiopia: 135,472,051 people against 57,532,493. Density: Ethiopia 123 per km², Kenya 99 per km².
- Which is richer, Ethiopia or Kenya?
- By gross national income per person, Kenya: $2,200 against $1,110 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.98× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Ethiopia or Kenya?
- In Ethiopia: life expectancy at birth is 67.6 years, against 63.8 — 3.8 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Ethiopia and Kenya have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Ethiopia: parliamentary republic; Kenya: presidential republic.