Iran vs Turkmenistan
Iran is 3.36 times larger than Turkmenistan. Turkmenistan would fit into Iran about 3.4 times.
IranTurkmenistanIran moved onto Turkmenistan · Equal-area projection
3.36×
Iran is 3.36× the area of Turkmenistan.
 Iran |  Turkmenistan | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaIran: 3.36× the area | 1,648,195 km²#17 of 194 | 491,210 km²#51 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 7 | 4 |
| People | ||
| PopulationIran: 12.1× the population | 92,417,681#17 of 194 · 2025 | 7,618,847#104 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityIran: 3.62× the density | 56 / km²#130 of 194 | 16 / km²#178 of 194 |
| Urban populationIran: 1.64× the urban share | 77%#52 of 192 · 2025 | 47%#133 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateTurkmenistan: 1.58× the births per woman | 1.68 per woman#119 of 192 · 2024 | 2.66 per woman#64 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthTurkmenistan: 0.73 points higher | +0.92%#101 of 192 · 2025 | +1.65%#60 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateTurkmenistan: 1.66× the birth rate | 12.6 per 1,000#107 of 192 · 2024 | 20.9 per 1,000#64 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateTurkmenistan: 1.21× the death rate | 4.8 per 1,000#176 of 192 · 2024 | 5.8 per 1,000#146 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Turkmenistan: 9.2 points higher | 22.0%#105 of 192 · 2025 | 31.2%#64 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Iran: 3.8 points higher | 8.6%#87 of 192 · 2025 | 4.8%#127 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationTurkmenistan: 0.4 per 1,000 higher | +1.3 per 1,000#44 of 192 · 2025 | +1.7 per 1,000#41 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadIran: 7.13× the refugees for its size | 1.71 per 1,000#48 of 190 · 2025 | 0.24 per 1,000#95 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyIran: 7.7 years longer | 77.9 years#56 of 192 · 2024 | 70.2 years#130 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityTurkmenistan: 2.95× the infant mortality | 10.3 per 1,000 births#110 of 191 · 2024 | 30.4 per 1,000 births#46 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsTurkmenistan: 1.07× the doctors per person | 1.81 per 1,000#87 of 178 · 2023 | 1.93 per 1,000#83 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolmentIran: 2.88× the university enrolment | 58.7%#59 of 145 · 2022 | 20.4%#117 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexIran: 0.035 higher | 0.799#74 of 190 · 2023 | 0.764#94 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaTurkmenistan: 1.36× the income per person | $4,650#118 of 185 · 2025 | $6,340#100 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPIran: 7.28× the economy | $362.68B2025 | $49.83B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Turkmenistan: 1.15× the output per person | $19,699#95 of 184 · 2025 | $22,602#87 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthTurkmenistan: 9.1 points higher | −2.8%#185 of 187 · 2025 | +6.3%#26 of 187 · 2025 |
| Inflation | +42.2%#5 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentIran: 1.93× the unemployment | 8.3%#48 of 178 · 2025 | 4.3%#109 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 2.5%#67 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 35.9#65 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureTurkmenistan: 8.3 points higher | 13.6% of jobs#99 of 178 · 2025 | 21.9% of jobs#80 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryIran: 6.1 points higher | 34.7% of jobs#6 of 178 · 2025 | 28.6% of jobs#24 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesIran: 2.2 points higher | 51.7% of jobs#110 of 178 · 2025 | 49.5% of jobs#122 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentTurkmenistan: 0.9 points higher | 0.5% of GDP#144 of 184 · 2025 | 1.4% of GDP#112 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsIran: 11.3 points higher | 25.8% of GDP#112 of 168 · 2025 | 14.5% of GDP#151 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spending | 2.1% of GDP#57 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet users | 85%#77 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsIran: 1.98× the mobile subscriptions | 174 per 100#11 of 191 · 2024 | 88 per 100#144 of 191 · 2021 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaIran: 1.32× the forest share | 7% of land#161 of 192 · 2024 | 5% of land#164 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personTurkmenistan: 1.2× the CO₂ per person | 9.05 t a year#20 of 185 · 2024 | 10.9 t a year#16 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyIran: 0.8 points higher | 0.9%#179 of 190 · 2021 | 0.1%#183 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Iran: 1.29× the air pollution | 40.2 µg/m³#23 of 191 · 2023 | 31.2 µg/m³#45 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landIran: 3.5 points higher | 7.8% of land#154 of 191 · 2025 | 4.3% of land#168 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landIran: 6.2 points higher | 9.7% of land#103 of 190 · 2024 | 3.5% of land#144 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressTurkmenistan: 1.66× the water stress | 81.3%#22 of 176 · 2022 | 135.2%#9 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationIran: 1.42× the rain and snow | 228 mm#161 of 180 · 2022 | 161 mm#168 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityTurkmenistan: 1.93 higher | −1.69#176 of 193 · 2025 | +0.24#83 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionIran: 0.17 higher | −1.14#164 of 193 · 2025 | −1.31#173 of 193 · 2025 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Theocracytheocratic republic | Presidential republicpresidential republic; authoritarian |
| Member of | BRICS, OPEC | — |
| Capital | Tehran | Ashgabat |
| Currency | Iranian rial (IRR) | Turkmenistan new manat (TMT) |
| Official languages | Persian | Turkmen |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+3:30 | UTC+5 |
| Calling code | +98 | +993 |
| Region | Southern Asia, Asia | Central 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. Iran sits at about 33° N and is stretched to 1.41× its true area; Turkmenistan at 39° N is stretched to 1.66×. 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 Turkmenistan?
- Yes. Iran is 3.36 times larger than Turkmenistan. Iran covers 1,648,195 km² and Turkmenistan covers 491,210 km².
- How many times does Turkmenistan fit into Iran?
- About 3.4 times: Iran has 3.36× the area of Turkmenistan.
- Why do Iran and Turkmenistan 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 Turkmenistan about 1.66×. 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 Turkmenistan?
- Iran: 92,417,681 people against 7,618,847. Density: Iran 56 per km², Turkmenistan 16 per km².
- Which is richer, Iran or Turkmenistan?
- By gross national income per person, Turkmenistan: $6,340 against $4,650 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.36× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Iran or Turkmenistan?
- In Iran: life expectancy at birth is 77.9 years, against 70.2 — 7.7 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Iran and Turkmenistan have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Iran: theocracy; Turkmenistan: presidential republic.