Latvia vs Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka and Latvia are almost exactly the same size.
LatviaSri LankaLatvia moved onto Sri Lanka · Equal-area projection
0.98×
Latvia is 0.98× the area of Sri Lanka. Put the other way, Sri Lanka is 1.02× the size of Latvia.
 Latvia |  Sri Lanka | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 64,594 km²#122 of 194 | 65,610 km²#120 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSri Lanka: 11.8× the population | 1,847,785#148 of 194 · 2025 | 21,756,000#63 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySri Lanka: 11.6× the density | 29 / km²#155 of 194 | 332 / km²#25 of 194 |
| Urban populationLatvia: 3.35× the urban share | 69%#80 of 192 · 2025 | 21%#187 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSri Lanka: 1.57× the births per woman | 1.24 per woman#174 of 192 · 2024 | 1.95 per woman#99 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSri Lanka: 0.26 points higher | −0.99%#189 of 192 · 2025 | −0.73%#186 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSri Lanka: 1.46× the birth rate | 6.9 per 1,000#181 of 192 · 2024 | 10.1 per 1,000#138 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateLatvia: 1.83× the death rate | 14.3 per 1,000#4 of 192 · 2024 | 7.8 per 1,000#76 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Sri Lanka: 6.5 points higher | 15.2%#160 of 192 · 2025 | 21.7%#106 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Latvia: 9.7 points higher | 22.2%#13 of 192 · 2025 | 12.5%#68 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSri Lanka: 2.6 per 1,000 higher | −4.0 per 1,000#169 of 192 · 2025 | −1.4 per 1,000#126 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSri Lanka: 68.2× the refugees for its size | 0.10 per 1,000#118 of 190 · 2025 | 6.82 per 1,000#24 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancySri Lanka: 1.3 years longer | 76.4 years#74 of 192 · 2024 | 77.7 years#62 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySri Lanka: 2.36× the infant mortality | 2.2 per 1,000 births#177 of 191 · 2024 | 5.2 per 1,000 births#142 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsLatvia: 2.98× the doctors per person | 3.40 per 1,000#49 of 178 · 2022 | 1.14 per 1,000#104 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolmentLatvia: 4.0× the university enrolment | 82.9%#19 of 145 · 2024 | 20.7%#116 of 145 · 2023 |
| Human Development IndexLatvia: 0.113 higher | 0.889#40 of 190 · 2023 | 0.776#88 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaLatvia: 5.35× the income per person | $24,980#47 of 185 · 2025 | $4,670#117 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPSri Lanka: 2.24× the economy | $48.62B2025 | $108.83B2025 |
| Income group | High income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Latvia: 2.7× the output per person | $46,137#47 of 184 · 2025 | $17,065#102 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthSri Lanka: 2.9 points higher | +2.1%#127 of 187 · 2025 | +5.0%#45 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationLatvia: 8.5 points higher | +3.7%#68 of 176 · 2025 | −4.8%#175 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentLatvia: 1.65× the unemployment | 6.6%#63 of 178 · 2025 | 4.0%#113 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySri Lanka: 6.75× the share in extreme poverty | 0.4%#107 of 149 · 2023 | 2.7%#65 of 149 · 2019 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Sri Lanka: 3.7 higher | 34.0#79 of 149 · 2023 | 37.7#54 of 149 · 2019 |
| Jobs in agricultureSri Lanka: 19.2 points higher | 6.7% of jobs#124 of 178 · 2025 | 25.9% of jobs#71 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySri Lanka: 4.5 points higher | 21.8% of jobs#65 of 178 · 2025 | 26.3% of jobs#33 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesLatvia: 23.7 points higher | 71.5% of jobs#46 of 178 · 2025 | 47.8% of jobs#129 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentSri Lanka: 0.2 points higher | 0.8% of GDP#137 of 184 · 2025 | 1.0% of GDP#126 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsLatvia: 43.6 points higher | 62.6% of GDP#32 of 168 · 2025 | 19.0% of GDP#136 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingLatvia: 2.76× the military spending | 3.6% of GDP#16 of 155 · 2025 | 1.3% of GDP#97 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersLatvia: 1.7× the share online | 93%#40 of 184 · 2024 | 55%#141 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsSri Lanka: 1.1× the mobile subscriptions | 121 per 100#78 of 191 · 2024 | 133 per 100#45 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaLatvia: 1.62× the forest share | 56% of land#38 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#87 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personLatvia: 3.44× the CO₂ per person | 3.65 t a year#70 of 185 · 2024 | 1.06 t a year#128 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energySri Lanka: 4.8 points higher | 44.0%#55 of 190 · 2021 | 48.8%#51 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Sri Lanka: 1.75× the air pollution | 13.0 µg/m³#134 of 191 · 2023 | 22.7 µg/m³#68 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landSri Lanka: 12.0 points higher | 18.8% of land#88 of 191 · 2025 | 30.8% of land#31 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSri Lanka: 0.4 points higher | 21.8% of land#49 of 190 · 2024 | 22.2% of land#46 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSri Lanka: 90.8× the water stress | 1.0%#160 of 176 · 2022 | 90.8%#19 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSri Lanka: 2.57× the rain and snow | 667 mm#117 of 180 · 2022 | 1,712 mm#45 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityLatvia: 0.85 higher | +0.81#48 of 193 · 2025 | −0.04#108 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionLatvia: 1.05 higher | +0.77#43 of 193 · 2025 | −0.28#99 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateSri Lanka: 1.32× the homicide rate | 2.5 per 100,000#68 of 146 · 2023 | 3.3 per 100,000#61 of 146 · 2019 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republic | Presidential republic |
| Member of | EU, NATO, Euro area, Schengen Area, OECD | — |
| Capital | Riga | Colombo |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) | Sri Lankan rupee (LKR) |
| Official languages | Latvian | Tamil, Sinhala |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+2, summer time UTC+3 | UTC+5:30 |
| Calling code | +371 | +94 |
| Region | Northern Europe, Europe | Southern Asia, Asia |
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; Sri Lanka at 8° N is stretched to 1.02×. That difference is why Latvia looks so much bigger than it is next to Sri Lanka. 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 Sri Lanka?
- No. Latvia and Sri Lanka are almost exactly the same size. Latvia covers 64,594 km² and Sri Lanka covers 65,610 km².
- How many times does Latvia fit into Sri Lanka?
- About 1.0 times: Sri Lanka has 1.02× the area of Latvia.
- Why do Latvia and Sri Lanka 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 Sri Lanka about 1.02×. That is why Latvia looks so much bigger than it really is next to Sri Lanka. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Latvia or Sri Lanka?
- Sri Lanka: 21,756,000 people against 1,847,785. Density: Latvia 29 per km², Sri Lanka 332 per km².
- Which is richer, Latvia or Sri Lanka?
- By gross national income per person, Latvia: $24,980 against $4,670 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 5.35× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Latvia or Sri Lanka?
- In Sri Lanka: life expectancy at birth is 77.7 years, against 76.4 — 1.3 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Latvia and Sri Lanka have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Latvia: parliamentary republic; Sri Lanka: presidential republic.