Kenya vs Somalia
Somalia is 10% larger than Kenya.
KenyaSomaliaKenya moved onto Somalia · Equal-area projection
0.91×
Kenya is 0.91× the area of Somalia. Put the other way, Somalia is 1.1× the size of Kenya.
 Kenya |  Somalia | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSomalia: 1.1× the area | 581,309 km²#48 of 194 | 637,657 km²#43 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 5 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationKenya: 2.93× the population | 57,532,493#26 of 194 · 2025 | 19,654,739#67 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityKenya: 3.21× the density | 99 / km²#90 of 194 | 31 / km²#149 of 194 |
| Urban populationSomalia: 1.71× the urban share | 32%#165 of 192 · 2025 | 55%#123 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSomalia: 1.9× the births per woman | 3.17 per woman#50 of 192 · 2024 | 6.01 per woman#2 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSomalia: 1.41 points higher | +1.93%#50 of 192 · 2025 | +3.34%#8 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSomalia: 1.57× the birth rate | 27.0 per 1,000#43 of 192 · 2024 | 42.3 per 1,000#3 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSomalia: 1.35× the death rate | 7.2 per 1,000#94 of 192 · 2024 | 9.7 per 1,000#41 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Somalia: 10.3 points higher | 36.3%#45 of 192 · 2025 | 46.6%#2 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Kenya: 0.4 points higher | 3.0%#171 of 192 · 2025 | 2.6%#180 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSomalia: 1.1 per 1,000 higher | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 | +0.6 per 1,000#55 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSomalia: 197× the refugees for its size | 0.23 per 1,000#96 of 190 · 2025 | 45.39 per 1,000#8 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyKenya: 4.8 years longer | 63.8 years#171 of 192 · 2024 | 59.0 years#187 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySomalia: 1.91× the infant mortality | 34.2 per 1,000 births#37 of 191 · 2024 | 65.4 per 1,000 births#4 of 191 · 2024 |
| Doctors | 0.29 per 1,000#138 of 178 · 2023 | — |
| University enrolment | 10.4%#130 of 145 · 2024 | — |
| Human Development IndexKenya: 0.224 higher | 0.628#140 of 190 · 2023 | 0.404#189 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaKenya: 3.44× the income per person | $2,200#146 of 185 · 2025 | $640#179 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPKenya: 10.5× the economy | $135.94B2025 | $13B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Kenya: 4.27× the output per person | $7,016#141 of 184 · 2025 | $1,643#182 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthKenya: 1.6 points higher | +4.6%#51 of 187 · 2025 | +3.0%#102 of 187 · 2025 |
| Inflation | +4.1%#52 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentSomalia: 3.5× the unemployment | 5.4%#80 of 178 · 2025 | 18.9%#8 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 45.5%#13 of 149 · 2022 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 38.5#47 of 149 · 2022 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureKenya: 15.8 points higher | 45.8% of jobs#28 of 178 · 2025 | 30.0% of jobs#60 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySomalia: 5.3 points higher | 12.5% of jobs#150 of 178 · 2025 | 17.8% of jobs#108 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesSomalia: 10.5 points higher | 41.7% of jobs#143 of 178 · 2025 | 52.2% of jobs#109 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentSomalia: 5.6 points higher | 0.8% of GDP#137 of 184 · 2025 | 6.4% of GDP#29 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsSomalia: 13.4 points higher | 15.8% of GDP#144 of 168 · 2025 | 29.2% of GDP#106 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingSomalia: 1.44× the military spending | 1.1% of GDP#108 of 155 · 2025 | 1.5% of GDP#85 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersKenya: 1.25× the share online | 35%#158 of 184 · 2024 | 28%#169 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsKenya: 2.33× the mobile subscriptions | 126 per 100#64 of 191 · 2024 | 54 per 100#179 of 191 · 2023 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSomalia: 1.18× the forest share | 7% of land#161 of 192 · 2024 | 8% of land#159 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personKenya: 7.6× the CO₂ per person | 0.38 t a year#155 of 185 · 2024 | 0.05 t a year#182 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energySomalia: 27.7 points higher | 67.7%#30 of 190 · 2021 | 95.4%#2 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityKenya: 22.6 points higher | 77.0%#151 of 192 · 2024 | 54.4%#171 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Kenya: 1.1× the air pollution | 20.3 µg/m³#79 of 191 · 2023 | 18.5 µg/m³#95 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landKenya: 13.9 points higher | 13.9% of land#124 of 191 · 2025 | 0.0% of land#188 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landKenya: 9.7 points higher | 11.5% of land#87 of 190 · 2024 | 1.8% of land#165 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressKenya: 1.36× the water stress | 33.2%#50 of 176 · 2022 | 24.5%#61 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationKenya: 2.23× the rain and snow | 630 mm#125 of 180 · 2022 | 282 mm#155 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityKenya: 1.05 higher | −1.12#168 of 193 · 2025 | −2.17#190 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionKenya: 0.83 higher | −0.86#145 of 193 · 2025 | −1.69#192 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 4.9 per 100,000#49 of 146 · 2022 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Parliamentary republicfederal parliamentary republic |
| Capital | Nairobi | Mogadishu |
| Currency | Kenyan shilling (KES) | Somali shilling (SOS) |
| Official languages | English, Swahili | Arabic, Somali |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+3 | UTC+3 |
| Calling code | +254 | +252 |
| Region | Eastern Africa, Africa | Eastern 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. Kenya sits at about 1° N and is stretched to 1.0× its true area; Somalia at 5° N 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 Kenya bigger than Somalia?
- No. Kenya is 9% smaller than Somalia. Kenya covers 581,309 km² and Somalia covers 637,657 km².
- How many times does Kenya fit into Somalia?
- About 1.1 times: Somalia has 1.1× the area of Kenya.
- Why do Kenya and Somalia look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Kenya is drawn about 1.0× its true area there and Somalia 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, Kenya or Somalia?
- Kenya: 57,532,493 people against 19,654,739. Density: Kenya 99 per km², Somalia 31 per km².
- Which is richer, Kenya or Somalia?
- By gross national income per person, Kenya: $2,200 against $640 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 3.44× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Kenya or Somalia?
- In Kenya: life expectancy at birth is 63.8 years, against 59.0 — 4.8 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Kenya and Somalia have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Kenya: presidential republic; Somalia: parliamentary republic.