Guinea vs Sierra Leone
Guinea is 3.43 times larger than Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone would fit into Guinea about 3.4 times.
GuineaSierra LeoneGuinea moved onto Sierra Leone · Equal-area projection
3.43×
Guinea is 3.43× the area of Sierra Leone.
 Guinea |  Sierra Leone | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaGuinea: 3.43× the area | 245,857 km²#77 of 194 | 71,740 km²#117 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationGuinea: 1.71× the population | 15,099,727#75 of 194 · 2025 | 8,819,794#101 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySierra Leone: 2.0× the density | 61 / km²#125 of 194 | 123 / km²#72 of 194 |
| Urban populationSierra Leone: 1.19× the urban share | 39%#153 of 192 · 2025 | 46%#135 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateGuinea: 1.12× the births per woman | 4.13 per woman#20 of 192 · 2024 | 3.70 per woman#35 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthGuinea: 0.27 points higher | +2.31%#33 of 192 · 2025 | +2.04%#46 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateGuinea: 1.11× the birth rate | 33.3 per 1,000#15 of 192 · 2024 | 30.1 per 1,000#29 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateGuinea: 1.1× the death rate | 9.0 per 1,000#52 of 192 · 2024 | 8.2 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Guinea: 2.8 points higher | 40.5%#19 of 192 · 2025 | 37.7%#35 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Guinea: 0.2 points higher | 3.5%#153 of 192 · 2025 | 3.3%#158 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationGuinea: 0.2 per 1,000 higher | −1.1 per 1,000#119 of 192 · 2025 | −1.3 per 1,000#124 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadGuinea: 3.13× the refugees for its size | 3.16 per 1,000#33 of 190 · 2025 | 1.01 per 1,000#59 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancySierra Leone: 1.1 years longer | 60.9 years#185 of 192 · 2024 | 62.0 years#181 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityGuinea: 1.1× the infant mortality | 59.8 per 1,000 births#7 of 191 · 2024 | 54.6 per 1,000 births#12 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsGuinea: 1.62× the doctors per person | 0.21 per 1,000#147 of 178 · 2022 | 0.13 per 1,000#164 of 178 · 2022 |
| Human Development IndexGuinea: 0.033 higher | 0.500#176 of 190 · 2023 | 0.467#182 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaGuinea: 2.08× the income per person | $1,730#154 of 185 · 2025 | $830#174 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPGuinea: 3.8× the economy | $28.35B2025 | $7.46B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Guinea: 1.33× the output per person | $4,935#151 of 184 · 2025 | $3,717#163 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthGuinea: 2.8 points higher | +7.4%#16 of 187 · 2025 | +4.6%#51 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationSierra Leone: 3.9 points higher | +3.6%#71 of 176 · 2025 | +7.5%#32 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentGuinea: 1.63× the unemployment | 5.2%#86 of 178 · 2025 | 3.2%#133 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySierra Leone: 3.55× the share in extreme poverty | 11.7%#43 of 149 · 2018 | 41.5%#18 of 149 · 2018 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Sierra Leone: 6.1 higher | 29.6#123 of 149 · 2018 | 35.7#66 of 149 · 2018 |
| Jobs in agricultureGuinea: 2.9 points higher | 47.4% of jobs#25 of 178 · 2025 | 44.5% of jobs#31 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryGuinea: 2.7 points higher | 14.2% of jobs#142 of 178 · 2025 | 11.5% of jobs#151 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesSierra Leone: 5.5 points higher | 38.5% of jobs#149 of 178 · 2025 | 44.0% of jobs#140 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentGuinea: 25.0 points higher | 27.4% of GDP#4 of 184 · 2025 | 2.4% of GDP#78 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsGuinea: 20.5 points higher | 41.4% of GDP#66 of 168 · 2025 | 20.9% of GDP#133 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingGuinea: 5.49× the military spending | 2.0% of GDP#59 of 155 · 2025 | 0.4% of GDP#148 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersGuinea: 1.33× the share online | 33%#161 of 184 · 2024 | 25%#170 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsSierra Leone: 1.1× the mobile subscriptions | 98 per 100#131 of 191 · 2023 | 108 per 100#114 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSierra Leone: 1.7× the forest share | 20% of land#120 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#90 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personGuinea: 2.06× the CO₂ per person | 0.35 t a year#157 of 185 · 2024 | 0.17 t a year#170 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energySierra Leone: 5.0 points higher | 66.6%#31 of 190 · 2022 | 71.6%#25 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityGuinea: 14.6 points higher | 53.8%#173 of 192 · 2024 | 39.2%#182 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Guinea: 1.21× the air pollution | 27.3 µg/m³#56 of 191 · 2023 | 22.5 µg/m³#69 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landGuinea: 30.0 points higher | 42.6% of land#6 of 191 · 2025 | 12.6% of land#134 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landGuinea: 2.8 points higher | 24.7% of land#40 of 190 · 2024 | 21.9% of land#48 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressGuinea: 2.8× the water stress | 1.4%#157 of 176 · 2022 | 0.5%#165 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSierra Leone: 1.53× the rain and snow | 1,651 mm#48 of 180 · 2022 | 2,526 mm#13 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilitySierra Leone: 0.34 higher | −0.73#156 of 193 · 2025 | −0.39#131 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionSierra Leone: 0.29 higher | −1.07#158 of 193 · 2025 | −0.78#140 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 2.2 per 100,000#74 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Conakry | Freetown |
| Currency | Guinean franc (GNF) | Leone (SLE) |
| Official languages | French, languages of Guinea | English, Krio |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC | UTC |
| Calling code | +224 | +232 |
| Region | Western 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. Guinea sits at about 10° N and is stretched to 1.03× its true area; Sierra Leone at 9° N is stretched to 1.02×. 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 Guinea bigger than Sierra Leone?
- Yes. Guinea is 3.43 times larger than Sierra Leone. Guinea covers 245,857 km² and Sierra Leone covers 71,740 km².
- How many times does Sierra Leone fit into Guinea?
- About 3.4 times: Guinea has 3.43× the area of Sierra Leone.
- Why do Guinea and Sierra Leone look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Guinea is drawn about 1.03× its true area there and Sierra Leone about 1.02×. 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, Guinea or Sierra Leone?
- Guinea: 15,099,727 people against 8,819,794. Density: Guinea 61 per km², Sierra Leone 123 per km².
- Which is richer, Guinea or Sierra Leone?
- By gross national income per person, Guinea: $1,730 against $830 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 2.08× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Guinea or Sierra Leone?
- In Sierra Leone: life expectancy at birth is 62.0 years, against 60.9 — 1.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Guinea and Sierra Leone have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).