Kenya vs South Sudan
South Sudan is 11% larger than Kenya.
KenyaSouth SudanKenya moved onto South Sudan · Equal-area projection
0.9×
Kenya is 0.9× the area of South Sudan. Put the other way, South Sudan is 1.11× the size of Kenya.
 Kenya |  South Sudan | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSouth Sudan: 1.11× the area | 581,309 km²#48 of 194 | 644,329 km²#41 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 5 | 6 |
| People | ||
| PopulationKenya: 4.72× the population | 57,532,493#26 of 194 · 2025 | 12,188,788#81 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityKenya: 5.23× the density | 99 / km²#90 of 194 | 19 / km²#170 of 194 |
| Urban populationKenya: 1.48× the urban share | 32%#165 of 192 · 2025 | 22%#185 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSouth Sudan: 1.2× the births per woman | 3.17 per woman#50 of 192 · 2024 | 3.79 per woman#32 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSouth Sudan: 0.10 points higher | +1.93%#50 of 192 · 2025 | +2.03%#47 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSouth Sudan: 1.08× the birth rate | 27.0 per 1,000#43 of 192 · 2024 | 29.2 per 1,000#34 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSouth Sudan: 1.36× the death rate | 7.2 per 1,000#94 of 192 · 2024 | 9.8 per 1,000#40 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15South Sudan: 1.7 points higher | 36.3%#45 of 192 · 2025 | 38.0%#33 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65South Sudan: 0.1 points higher | 3.0%#171 of 192 · 2025 | 3.1%#166 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSouth Sudan: 1.0 per 1,000 higher | −0.5 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2025 | +0.5 per 1,000#58 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSouth Sudan: 851× the refugees for its size | 0.23 per 1,000#96 of 190 · 2025 | 195.79 per 1,000#1 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyKenya: 6.1 years longer | 63.8 years#171 of 192 · 2024 | 57.7 years#189 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySouth Sudan: 2.1× the infant mortality | 34.2 per 1,000 births#37 of 191 · 2024 | 71.9 per 1,000 births#1 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsKenya: 7.25× the doctors per person | 0.29 per 1,000#138 of 178 · 2023 | 0.04 per 1,000#177 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | 10.4%#130 of 145 · 2024 | — |
| Human Development IndexKenya: 0.240 higher | 0.628#140 of 190 · 2023 | 0.388#190 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | $2,200#146 of 185 · 2025 | — |
| GDP | $135.94B2025 | — |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $7,016#141 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| GDP growth | +4.6%#51 of 187 · 2025 | — |
| InflationSouth Sudan: 87.3 points higher | +4.1%#52 of 176 · 2025 | +91.4%#4 of 176 · 2024 |
| UnemploymentSouth Sudan: 2.3× the unemployment | 5.4%#80 of 178 · 2025 | 12.4%#22 of 178 · 2023 |
| Extreme povertySouth Sudan: 1.68× the share in extreme poverty | 45.5%#13 of 149 · 2022 | 76.5%#3 of 149 · 2016 |
| Income inequality (Gini)South Sudan: 5.5 higher | 38.5#47 of 149 · 2022 | 44.0#19 of 149 · 2016 |
| Jobs in agricultureSouth Sudan: 18.0 points higher | 45.8% of jobs#28 of 178 · 2025 | 63.8% of jobs#11 of 178 · 2023 |
| Jobs in industryKenya: 10.8 points higher | 12.5% of jobs#150 of 178 · 2025 | 1.7% of jobs#178 of 178 · 2023 |
| Jobs in servicesKenya: 7.1 points higher | 41.7% of jobs#143 of 178 · 2025 | 34.6% of jobs#158 of 178 · 2023 |
| Foreign investment | 0.8% of GDP#137 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| Exports | 15.8% of GDP#144 of 168 · 2025 | — |
| Military spendingSouth Sudan: 3.2× the military spending | 1.1% of GDP#108 of 155 · 2025 | 3.4% of GDP#19 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet users | 35%#158 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsKenya: 2.68× the mobile subscriptions | 126 per 100#64 of 191 · 2024 | 47 per 100#185 of 191 · 2023 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSouth Sudan: 1.71× the forest share | 7% of land#161 of 192 · 2024 | 11% of land#151 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per person | 0.38 t a year#155 of 185 · 2024 | — |
| Renewable energyKenya: 35.3 points higher | 67.7%#30 of 190 · 2021 | 32.4%#76 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityKenya: 71.6 points higher | 77.0%#151 of 192 · 2024 | 5.4%#192 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)South Sudan: 1.17× the air pollution | 20.3 µg/m³#79 of 191 · 2023 | 23.7 µg/m³#64 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landSouth Sudan: 1.5 points higher | 13.9% of land#124 of 191 · 2025 | 15.4% of land#114 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landKenya: 7.7 points higher | 11.5% of land#87 of 190 · 2024 | 3.8% of land#141 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressKenya: 7.9× the water stress | 33.2%#50 of 176 · 2022 | 4.2%#127 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSouth Sudan: 1.43× the rain and snow | 630 mm#125 of 180 · 2022 | 900 mm#97 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityKenya: 0.40 higher | −1.12#168 of 193 · 2025 | −1.52#173 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionKenya: 1.24 higher | −0.86#145 of 193 · 2025 | −2.10#193 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 4.9 per 100,000#49 of 146 · 2022 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Nairobi | Juba |
| Currency | Kenyan shilling (KES) | South Sudanese pound (SSP) |
| Official languages | English, Swahili | English |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+3 | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +254 | +211 |
| 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; South Sudan at 7° N is stretched to 1.02×. 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 South Sudan?
- No. Kenya is 10% smaller than South Sudan. Kenya covers 581,309 km² and South Sudan covers 644,329 km².
- How many times does Kenya fit into South Sudan?
- About 1.1 times: South Sudan has 1.11× the area of Kenya.
- Why do Kenya and South Sudan 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 South Sudan about 1.02×. 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 South Sudan?
- Kenya: 57,532,493 people against 12,188,788. Density: Kenya 99 per km², South Sudan 19 per km².
- Where do people live longer, Kenya or South Sudan?
- In Kenya: life expectancy at birth is 63.8 years, against 57.7 — 6.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Kenya and South Sudan have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).