Latvia vs Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone is 11% larger than Latvia.
LatviaSierra LeoneLatvia moved onto Sierra Leone · Equal-area projection
0.9×
Latvia is 0.9× the area of Sierra Leone. Put the other way, Sierra Leone is 1.11× the size of Latvia.
 Latvia |  Sierra Leone | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSierra Leone: 1.11× the area | 64,594 km²#122 of 194 | 71,740 km²#117 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSierra Leone: 4.77× the population | 1,847,785#148 of 194 · 2025 | 8,819,794#101 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySierra Leone: 4.3× the density | 29 / km²#155 of 194 | 123 / km²#72 of 194 |
| Urban populationLatvia: 1.49× the urban share | 69%#80 of 192 · 2025 | 46%#135 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSierra Leone: 2.98× the births per woman | 1.24 per woman#174 of 192 · 2024 | 3.70 per woman#35 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSierra Leone: 3.03 points higher | −0.99%#189 of 192 · 2025 | +2.04%#46 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSierra Leone: 4.36× the birth rate | 6.9 per 1,000#181 of 192 · 2024 | 30.1 per 1,000#29 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateLatvia: 1.74× the death rate | 14.3 per 1,000#4 of 192 · 2024 | 8.2 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Sierra Leone: 22.5 points higher | 15.2%#160 of 192 · 2025 | 37.7%#35 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Latvia: 18.9 points higher | 22.2%#13 of 192 · 2025 | 3.3%#158 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSierra Leone: 2.7 per 1,000 higher | −4.0 per 1,000#169 of 192 · 2025 | −1.3 per 1,000#124 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSierra Leone: 10.1× the refugees for its size | 0.10 per 1,000#118 of 190 · 2025 | 1.01 per 1,000#59 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyLatvia: 14.4 years longer | 76.4 years#74 of 192 · 2024 | 62.0 years#181 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySierra Leone: 24.8× the infant mortality | 2.2 per 1,000 births#177 of 191 · 2024 | 54.6 per 1,000 births#12 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsLatvia: 26.2× the doctors per person | 3.40 per 1,000#49 of 178 · 2022 | 0.13 per 1,000#164 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | 82.9%#19 of 145 · 2024 | — |
| Human Development IndexLatvia: 0.422 higher | 0.889#40 of 190 · 2023 | 0.467#182 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaLatvia: 30.1× the income per person | $24,980#47 of 185 · 2025 | $830#174 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPLatvia: 6.51× the economy | $48.62B2025 | $7.46B2025 |
| Income group | High income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Latvia: 12.4× the output per person | $46,137#47 of 184 · 2025 | $3,717#163 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthSierra Leone: 2.5 points higher | +2.1%#127 of 187 · 2025 | +4.6%#51 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationSierra Leone: 3.8 points higher | +3.7%#68 of 176 · 2025 | +7.5%#32 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentLatvia: 2.06× the unemployment | 6.6%#63 of 178 · 2025 | 3.2%#133 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySierra Leone: 104× the share in extreme poverty | 0.4%#107 of 149 · 2023 | 41.5%#18 of 149 · 2018 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Sierra Leone: 1.7 higher | 34.0#79 of 149 · 2023 | 35.7#66 of 149 · 2018 |
| Jobs in agricultureSierra Leone: 37.8 points higher | 6.7% of jobs#124 of 178 · 2025 | 44.5% of jobs#31 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryLatvia: 10.3 points higher | 21.8% of jobs#65 of 178 · 2025 | 11.5% of jobs#151 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesLatvia: 27.5 points higher | 71.5% of jobs#46 of 178 · 2025 | 44.0% of jobs#140 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentSierra Leone: 1.6 points higher | 0.8% of GDP#137 of 184 · 2025 | 2.4% of GDP#78 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsLatvia: 41.7 points higher | 62.6% of GDP#32 of 168 · 2025 | 20.9% of GDP#133 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingLatvia: 9.76× the military spending | 3.6% of GDP#16 of 155 · 2025 | 0.4% of GDP#148 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersLatvia: 3.69× the share online | 93%#40 of 184 · 2024 | 25%#170 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsLatvia: 1.12× the mobile subscriptions | 121 per 100#78 of 191 · 2024 | 108 per 100#114 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaLatvia: 1.64× the forest share | 56% of land#38 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#90 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personLatvia: 21.5× the CO₂ per person | 3.65 t a year#70 of 185 · 2024 | 0.17 t a year#170 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energySierra Leone: 27.6 points higher | 44.0%#55 of 190 · 2021 | 71.6%#25 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityLatvia: 60.8 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 39.2%#182 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Sierra Leone: 1.73× the air pollution | 13.0 µg/m³#134 of 191 · 2023 | 22.5 µg/m³#69 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landLatvia: 6.2 points higher | 18.8% of land#88 of 191 · 2025 | 12.6% of land#134 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSierra Leone: 0.1 points higher | 21.8% of land#49 of 190 · 2024 | 21.9% of land#48 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressLatvia: 2.0× the water stress | 1.0%#160 of 176 · 2022 | 0.5%#165 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSierra Leone: 3.79× the rain and snow | 667 mm#117 of 180 · 2022 | 2,526 mm#13 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityLatvia: 1.20 higher | +0.81#48 of 193 · 2025 | −0.39#131 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionLatvia: 1.55 higher | +0.77#43 of 193 · 2025 | −0.78#140 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateLatvia: 1.14× the homicide rate | 2.5 per 100,000#68 of 146 · 2023 | 2.2 per 100,000#74 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republic | Presidential republic |
| Member of | EU, NATO, Euro area, Schengen Area, OECD | — |
| Capital | Riga | Freetown |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) | Leone (SLE) |
| Official languages | Latvian | English, Krio |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+2, summer time UTC+3 | UTC |
| Calling code | +371 | +232 |
| Region | Northern Europe, Europe | Western 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. Latvia sits at about 57° N and is stretched to 3.35× its true area; Sierra Leone at 9° N is stretched to 1.02×. That difference is why Latvia looks so much bigger than it is next to Sierra Leone. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Latvia bigger than Sierra Leone?
- No. Latvia is 10% smaller than Sierra Leone. Latvia covers 64,594 km² and Sierra Leone covers 71,740 km².
- How many times does Latvia fit into Sierra Leone?
- About 1.1 times: Sierra Leone has 1.11× the area of Latvia.
- Why do Latvia and Sierra Leone look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Latvia is drawn about 3.35× its true area there and Sierra Leone about 1.02×. That is why Latvia looks so much bigger than it really is next to Sierra Leone. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Latvia or Sierra Leone?
- Sierra Leone: 8,819,794 people against 1,847,785. Density: Latvia 29 per km², Sierra Leone 123 per km².
- Which is richer, Latvia or Sierra Leone?
- By gross national income per person, Latvia: $24,980 against $830 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 30.1× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Latvia or Sierra Leone?
- In Latvia: life expectancy at birth is 76.4 years, against 62.0 — 14.4 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Latvia and Sierra Leone have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Latvia: parliamentary republic; Sierra Leone: presidential republic.