Iran vs Sudan
Sudan is 14% larger than Iran.
IranSudanIran moved onto Sudan · Equal-area projection
0.87×
Iran is 0.87× the area of Sudan. Put the other way, Sudan is 1.14× the size of Iran.
 Iran |  Sudan | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSudan: 1.14× the area | 1,648,195 km²#17 of 194 | 1,886,068 km²#15 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 7 | 7 |
| People | ||
| PopulationIran: 1.79× the population | 92,417,681#17 of 194 · 2025 | 51,662,147#30 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityIran: 2.05× the density | 56 / km²#130 of 194 | 27 / km²#157 of 194 |
| Urban populationIran: 2.22× the urban share | 77%#52 of 192 · 2025 | 35%#159 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSudan: 2.54× the births per woman | 1.68 per woman#119 of 192 · 2024 | 4.26 per woman#16 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSudan: 1.46 points higher | +0.92%#101 of 192 · 2025 | +2.38%#30 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSudan: 2.62× the birth rate | 12.6 per 1,000#107 of 192 · 2024 | 33.0 per 1,000#18 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSudan: 1.31× the death rate | 4.8 per 1,000#176 of 192 · 2024 | 6.3 per 1,000#128 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Sudan: 18.2 points higher | 22.0%#105 of 192 · 2025 | 40.2%#24 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Iran: 5.2 points higher | 8.6%#87 of 192 · 2025 | 3.4%#156 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSudan: 4.3 per 1,000 higher | +1.3 per 1,000#44 of 192 · 2025 | +5.6 per 1,000#17 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSudan: 31.9× the refugees for its size | 1.71 per 1,000#48 of 190 · 2025 | 54.60 per 1,000#7 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyIran: 11.4 years longer | 77.9 years#56 of 192 · 2024 | 66.5 years#156 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySudan: 4.17× the infant mortality | 10.3 per 1,000 births#110 of 191 · 2024 | 42.9 per 1,000 births#23 of 191 · 2024 |
| Doctors | 1.81 per 1,000#87 of 178 · 2023 | — |
| University enrolment | 58.7%#59 of 145 · 2022 | — |
| Human Development IndexIran: 0.288 higher | 0.799#74 of 190 · 2023 | 0.511#173 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaIran: 5.17× the income per person | $4,650#118 of 185 · 2025 | $900#173 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPIran: 6.03× the economy | $362.68B2025 | $60.16B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Iran: 8.99× the output per person | $19,699#95 of 184 · 2025 | $2,192#175 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthSudan: 5.9 points higher | −2.8%#185 of 187 · 2025 | +3.1%#96 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationSudan: 96.6 points higher | +42.2%#5 of 176 · 2025 | +138.8%#2 of 176 · 2022 |
| UnemploymentIran: 1.11× the unemployment | 8.3%#48 of 178 · 2025 | 7.5%#53 of 178 · 2022 |
| Extreme poverty | 2.5%#67 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 35.9#65 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureSudan: 26.2 points higher | 13.6% of jobs#99 of 178 · 2025 | 39.8% of jobs#41 of 178 · 2022 |
| Jobs in industryIran: 20.7 points higher | 34.7% of jobs#6 of 178 · 2025 | 14.0% of jobs#143 of 178 · 2022 |
| Jobs in servicesIran: 5.5 points higher | 51.7% of jobs#110 of 178 · 2025 | 46.2% of jobs#134 of 178 · 2022 |
| Foreign investmentIran: 0.5 points higher | 0.5% of GDP#144 of 184 · 2025 | 0.0% of GDP#162 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsIran: 24.7 points higher | 25.8% of GDP#112 of 168 · 2025 | 1.1% of GDP#168 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingIran: 2.25× the military spending | 2.1% of GDP#57 of 155 · 2025 | 0.9% of GDP#118 of 155 · 2021 |
| Internet users | 85%#77 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsIran: 2.49× the mobile subscriptions | 174 per 100#11 of 191 · 2024 | 70 per 100#161 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSudan: 1.8× the forest share | 7% of land#161 of 192 · 2024 | 12% of land#147 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personIran: 21× the CO₂ per person | 9.05 t a year#20 of 185 · 2024 | 0.43 t a year#153 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energySudan: 60.1 points higher | 0.9%#179 of 190 · 2021 | 61.0%#37 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityIran: 34.0 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 66.0%#157 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Iran: 1.07× the air pollution | 40.2 µg/m³#23 of 191 · 2023 | 37.6 µg/m³#27 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landIran: 5.0 points higher | 7.8% of land#154 of 191 · 2025 | 2.8% of land#177 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSudan: 1.5 points higher | 9.7% of land#103 of 190 · 2024 | 11.2% of land#92 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSudan: 1.46× the water stress | 81.3%#22 of 176 · 2022 | 118.7%#14 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSudan: 1.1× the rain and snow | 228 mm#161 of 180 · 2022 | 250 mm#158 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityIran: 0.38 higher | −1.69#176 of 193 · 2025 | −2.07#187 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionIran: 0.43 higher | −1.14#164 of 193 · 2025 | −1.57#188 of 193 · 2025 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Theocracytheocratic republic | Presidential republic |
| Member of | BRICS, OPEC | — |
| Capital | Tehran | Khartoum |
| Currency | Iranian rial (IRR) | Sudanese pound (SDG) |
| Official languages | Persian | English, Arabic |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+3:30 | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +98 | +249 |
| Region | Southern Asia, Asia | Northern 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. Iran sits at about 33° N and is stretched to 1.41× its true area; Sudan at 16° N is stretched to 1.08×. 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 Iran bigger than Sudan?
- No. Iran is 13% smaller than Sudan. Iran covers 1,648,195 km² and Sudan covers 1,886,068 km².
- How many times does Iran fit into Sudan?
- About 1.1 times: Sudan has 1.14× the area of Iran.
- Why do Iran and Sudan look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Iran is drawn about 1.41× its true area there and Sudan about 1.08×. 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, Iran or Sudan?
- Iran: 92,417,681 people against 51,662,147. Density: Iran 56 per km², Sudan 27 per km².
- Which is richer, Iran or Sudan?
- By gross national income per person, Iran: $4,650 against $900 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 5.17× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Iran or Sudan?
- In Iran: life expectancy at birth is 77.9 years, against 66.5 — 11.4 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Iran and Sudan have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Iran: theocracy; Sudan: presidential republic.