Iran vs United States
United States is 5.96 times larger than Iran. Iran would fit into United States about 6.0 times.
IranUnited StatesIran moved onto United States · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
0.17×
Iran is 0.17× the area of United States. Put the other way, United States is 5.96× the size of Iran.
 Iran |  United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaUnited States: 5.96× the area | 1,648,195 km²#17 of 194 | 9,826,675 km²#3 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 7 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationUnited States: 3.7× the population | 92,417,681#17 of 194 · 2025 | 341,784,857#3 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityIran: 1.61× the density | 56 / km²#130 of 194 | 35 / km²#145 of 194 |
| Urban populationUnited States: 1.04× the urban share | 77%#52 of 192 · 2025 | 80%#41 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateIran: 1.03× the births per woman | 1.68 per woman#119 of 192 · 2024 | 1.63 per woman#121 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthIran: 0.40 points higher | +0.92%#101 of 192 · 2025 | +0.52%#125 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateIran: 1.19× the birth rate | 12.6 per 1,000#107 of 192 · 2024 | 10.6 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateUnited States: 1.88× the death rate | 4.8 per 1,000#176 of 192 · 2024 | 9.0 per 1,000#52 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Iran: 4.9 points higher | 22.0%#105 of 192 · 2025 | 17.1%#140 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65United States: 9.8 points higher | 8.6%#87 of 192 · 2025 | 18.4%#38 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationUnited States: 2.3 per 1,000 higher | +1.3 per 1,000#44 of 192 · 2025 | +3.6 per 1,000#26 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadIran: 171× the refugees for its size | 1.71 per 1,000#48 of 190 · 2025 | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyUnited States: 1.0 years longer | 77.9 years#56 of 192 · 2024 | 78.9 years#46 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityIran: 1.87× the infant mortality | 10.3 per 1,000 births#110 of 191 · 2024 | 5.5 per 1,000 births#139 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsUnited States: 2.03× the doctors per person | 1.81 per 1,000#87 of 178 · 2023 | 3.68 per 1,000#39 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentUnited States: 1.35× the university enrolment | 58.7%#59 of 145 · 2022 | 79.4%#27 of 145 · 2022 |
| Human Development IndexUnited States: 0.139 higher | 0.799#74 of 190 · 2023 | 0.938#16 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaUnited States: 19.1× the income per person | $4,650#118 of 185 · 2025 | $88,810#5 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPUnited States: 84.8× the economy | $362.68B2025 | $30.77T2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)United States: 4.57× the output per person | $19,699#95 of 184 · 2025 | $90,027#9 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthUnited States: 5.0 points higher | −2.8%#185 of 187 · 2025 | +2.2%#126 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationIran: 39.3 points higher | +42.2%#5 of 176 · 2025 | +2.9%#92 of 176 · 2024 |
| UnemploymentIran: 1.98× the unemployment | 8.3%#48 of 178 · 2025 | 4.2%#110 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyIran: 2.27× the share in extreme poverty | 2.5%#67 of 149 · 2023 | 1.1%#82 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini)United States: 5.9 higher | 35.9#65 of 149 · 2023 | 41.8#30 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureIran: 12.1 points higher | 13.6% of jobs#99 of 178 · 2025 | 1.5% of jobs#164 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryIran: 15.8 points higher | 34.7% of jobs#6 of 178 · 2025 | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesUnited States: 27.9 points higher | 51.7% of jobs#110 of 178 · 2025 | 79.6% of jobs#16 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentUnited States: 0.5 points higher | 0.5% of GDP#144 of 184 · 2025 | 1.0% of GDP#126 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsIran: 14.8 points higher | 25.8% of GDP#112 of 168 · 2025 | 11.0% of GDP#159 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spendingUnited States: 1.49× the military spending | 2.1% of GDP#57 of 155 · 2025 | 3.1% of GDP#27 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersUnited States: 1.11× the share online | 85%#77 of 184 · 2024 | 95%#27 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsIran: 1.54× the mobile subscriptions | 174 per 100#11 of 191 · 2024 | 113 per 100#102 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaUnited States: 5.12× the forest share | 7% of land#161 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#92 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personUnited States: 1.5× the CO₂ per person | 9.05 t a year#20 of 185 · 2024 | 13.6 t a year#13 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyUnited States: 10.0 points higher | 0.9%#179 of 190 · 2021 | 10.9%#139 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Iran: 5.74× the air pollution | 40.2 µg/m³#23 of 191 · 2023 | 7.0 µg/m³#173 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landUnited States: 5.1 points higher | 7.8% of land#154 of 191 · 2025 | 12.9% of land#131 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landUnited States: 6.9 points higher | 9.7% of land#103 of 190 · 2024 | 16.6% of land#64 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressIran: 2.88× the water stress | 81.3%#22 of 176 · 2022 | 28.2%#57 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationUnited States: 3.14× the rain and snow | 228 mm#161 of 180 · 2022 | 715 mm#111 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityUnited States: 1.39 higher | −1.69#176 of 193 · 2025 | −0.30#122 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionUnited States: 2.01 higher | −1.14#164 of 193 · 2025 | +0.87#39 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 5.8 per 100,000#46 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Theocracytheocratic republic | Presidential republicconstitutional federal republic |
| Member of | BRICS, OPEC | NATO, OECD, G7, G20 |
| Capital | Tehran | Washington D.C. |
| Currency | Iranian rial (IRR) | United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | Persian | English |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+3:30 | UTC−5, summer time UTC−4 · UTC−10 to UTC−5, 6 time zones |
| Calling code | +98 | +1 |
| Region | Southern Asia, Asia | Northern America, North America |
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; United States at 45° N is stretched to 1.98×. That difference is why United States looks so much bigger than it is next to Iran. 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 United States?
- No. Iran is 5.96 times smaller than United States. Iran covers 1,648,195 km² and United States covers 9,826,675 km².
- How many times does Iran fit into United States?
- About 6.0 times: United States has 5.96× the area of Iran.
- Why do Iran and United States 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 United States about 1.98×. That is why United States looks so much bigger than it really is next to Iran. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Iran or United States?
- United States: 341,784,857 people against 92,417,681. Density: Iran 56 per km², United States 35 per km².
- Which is richer, Iran or United States?
- By gross national income per person, United States: $88,810 against $4,650 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 19.1× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Iran or United States?
- In United States: life expectancy at birth is 78.9 years, against 77.9 — 1.0 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Iran and United States have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Iran: theocracy; United States: presidential republic.