Iraq vs Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea is 6% larger than Iraq.
IraqPapua New GuineaIraq moved onto Papua New Guinea · Equal-area projection
0.94×
Iraq is 0.94× the area of Papua New Guinea. Put the other way, Papua New Guinea is 1.06× the size of Iraq.
 Iraq |  Papua New Guinea | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaPapua New Guinea: 1.06× the area | 437,072 km²#58 of 194 | 462,840 km²#53 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 1 |
| People | ||
| PopulationIraq: 4.37× the population | 47,020,774#34 of 194 · 2025 | 10,762,817#92 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityIraq: 4.63× the density | 108 / km²#82 of 194 | 23 / km²#162 of 194 |
| Urban populationIraq: 4.42× the urban share | 70%#74 of 192 · 2025 | 16%#191 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateIraq: 1.05× the births per woman | 3.22 per woman#48 of 192 · 2024 | 3.07 per woman#53 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthIraq: 0.35 points higher | +2.10%#42 of 192 · 2025 | +1.75%#57 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateIraq: 1.05× the birth rate | 25.6 per 1,000#47 of 192 · 2024 | 24.3 per 1,000#54 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death ratePapua New Guinea: 1.57× the death rate | 4.2 per 1,000#184 of 192 · 2024 | 6.6 per 1,000#117 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Iraq: 2.9 points higher | 36.0%#48 of 192 · 2025 | 33.1%#55 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Papua New Guinea: 0.2 points higher | 3.4%#156 of 192 · 2025 | 3.6%#150 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationThe same | 0.0 per 1,000#73 of 192 · 2025 | 0.0 per 1,000#73 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadIraq: 96× the refugees for its size | 5.76 per 1,000#25 of 190 · 2025 | 0.06 per 1,000#129 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyIraq: 6.1 years longer | 72.4 years#110 of 192 · 2024 | 66.3 years#158 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityPapua New Guinea: 1.56× the infant mortality | 20.1 per 1,000 births#69 of 191 · 2024 | 31.3 per 1,000 births#44 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsIraq: 17× the doctors per person | 1.02 per 1,000#107 of 178 · 2022 | 0.06 per 1,000#175 of 178 · 2023 |
| Human Development IndexIraq: 0.119 higher | 0.695#125 of 190 · 2023 | 0.576#157 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaIraq: 1.97× the income per person | $5,690#107 of 185 · 2025 | $2,890#134 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPIraq: 7.83× the economy | $254.37B2025 | $32.5B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Iraq: 2.74× the output per person | $14,267#111 of 184 · 2025 | $5,215#150 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthPapua New Guinea: 7.8 points higher | −2.2%#183 of 187 · 2025 | +5.6%#38 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationPapua New Guinea: 4.1 points higher | +0.3%#156 of 176 · 2025 | +4.4%#47 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentIraq: 5.96× the unemployment | 15.5%#14 of 178 · 2025 | 2.6%#154 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 0.5%#103 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 29.8#121 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Jobs in agriculturePapua New Guinea: 28.7 points higher | 8.2% of jobs#117 of 178 · 2025 | 36.9% of jobs#43 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryIraq: 18.6 points higher | 26.5% of jobs#30 of 178 · 2025 | 7.9% of jobs#166 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesIraq: 10.0 points higher | 65.3% of jobs#70 of 178 · 2025 | 55.3% of jobs#98 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentIraq: 0.6 points higher | -3.0% of GDP#178 of 184 · 2025 | -3.6% of GDP#181 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | 39.8% of GDP#74 of 168 · 2024 | — |
| Military spendingIraq: 7.0× the military spending | 2.5% of GDP#43 of 155 · 2025 | 0.3% of GDP#149 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersIraq: 4.34× the share online | 82%#95 of 184 · 2024 | 19%#175 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsIraq: 2.56× the mobile subscriptions | 100 per 100#127 of 191 · 2024 | 39 per 100#187 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaPapua New Guinea: 47× the forest share | 2% of land#173 of 192 · 2024 | 75% of land#9 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personIraq: 9.96× the CO₂ per person | 5.18 t a year#47 of 185 · 2024 | 0.52 t a year#149 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyPapua New Guinea: 53.5 points higher | 1.1%#173 of 190 · 2021 | 54.6%#43 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityIraq: 56.7 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 43.3%#180 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Iraq: 3.51× the air pollution | 49.5 µg/m³#13 of 191 · 2023 | 14.1 µg/m³#124 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landPapua New Guinea: 2.2 points higher | 1.5% of land#182 of 191 · 2025 | 3.7% of land#173 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landIraq: 10.6 points higher | 11.3% of land#90 of 190 · 2024 | 0.7% of land#178 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressIraq: 596× the water stress | 59.6%#30 of 176 · 2022 | 0.1%#175 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationPapua New Guinea: 14.5× the rain and snow | 216 mm#164 of 180 · 2022 | 3,142 mm#3 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityPapua New Guinea: 1.32 higher | −1.87#184 of 193 · 2025 | −0.55#145 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionPapua New Guinea: 0.47 higher | −1.25#168 of 193 · 2025 | −0.78#140 of 193 · 2025 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republicfederal parliamentary republic | Constitutional monarchyparliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm |
| Member of | OPEC | — |
| Capital | Baghdad | Port Moresby |
| Currency | Iraqi dinar (IQD) | Kina (PGK) |
| Official languages | Arabic, Kurdish language | English, Tok Pisin, Hiri Motu, Papua New Guinean Sign Language |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+3 | UTC+10 · UTC+10 to UTC+11, 2 time zones |
| Calling code | +964 | +675 |
| Region | Western Asia, Asia | Melanesia, Oceania |
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. Iraq sits at about 33° N and is stretched to 1.42× its true area; Papua New Guinea at 6° S is stretched to 1.01×. 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 Iraq bigger than Papua New Guinea?
- No. Iraq is 6% smaller than Papua New Guinea. Iraq covers 437,072 km² and Papua New Guinea covers 462,840 km².
- How many times does Iraq fit into Papua New Guinea?
- About 1.1 times: Papua New Guinea has 1.06× the area of Iraq.
- Why do Iraq and Papua New Guinea look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Iraq is drawn about 1.42× its true area there and Papua New Guinea about 1.01×. 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, Iraq or Papua New Guinea?
- Iraq: 47,020,774 people against 10,762,817. Density: Iraq 108 per km², Papua New Guinea 23 per km².
- Which is richer, Iraq or Papua New Guinea?
- By gross national income per person, Iraq: $5,690 against $2,890 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.97× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Iraq or Papua New Guinea?
- In Iraq: life expectancy at birth is 72.4 years, against 66.3 — 6.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Iraq and Papua New Guinea have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Iraq: parliamentary republic; Papua New Guinea: constitutional monarchy.