Lebanon vs Syria
Syria is 17.7 times larger than Lebanon. Lebanon would fit into Syria about 18 times.
LebanonSyriaLebanon moved onto Syria · Equal-area projection
0.06×
Lebanon is 0.06× the area of Syria. Put the other way, Syria is 17.7× the size of Lebanon.
 Lebanon |  Syria | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSyria: 17.7× the area | 10,452 km²#162 of 194 | 185,180 km²#87 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 2 | 5 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSyria: 4.38× the population | 5,849,421#115 of 194 · 2025 | 25,620,427#57 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityLebanon: 4.05× the density | 560 / km²#12 of 194 | 138 / km²#66 of 194 |
| Urban populationLebanon: 1.26× the urban share | 91%#18 of 192 · 2025 | 72%#65 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSyria: 1.21× the births per woman | 2.23 per woman#83 of 192 · 2024 | 2.70 per woman#62 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSyria: 3.02 points higher | +0.75%#112 of 192 · 2025 | +3.77%#5 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSyria: 1.45× the birth rate | 16.0 per 1,000#92 of 192 · 2024 | 23.2 per 1,000#57 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateLebanon: 1.22× the death rate | 6.0 per 1,000#140 of 192 · 2024 | 4.9 per 1,000#173 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Syria: 2.8 points higher | 25.6%#88 of 192 · 2025 | 28.4%#76 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Lebanon: 5.6 points higher | 10.4%#76 of 192 · 2025 | 4.8%#127 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSyria: 18.2 per 1,000 higher | −1.7 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2025 | +16.5 per 1,000#3 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSyria: 116× the refugees for its size | 1.64 per 1,000#49 of 190 · 2025 | 189.92 per 1,000#2 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyLebanon: 5.3 years longer | 77.9 years#56 of 192 · 2024 | 72.6 years#108 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySyria: 1.16× the infant mortality | 15.3 per 1,000 births#80 of 191 · 2024 | 17.7 per 1,000 births#72 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsLebanon: 1.76× the doctors per person | 2.68 per 1,000#69 of 178 · 2020 | 1.52 per 1,000#94 of 178 · 2021 |
| University enrolment | 54.4%#68 of 145 · 2023 | — |
| Human Development IndexLebanon: 0.188 higher | 0.752#101 of 190 · 2023 | 0.564#159 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaLebanon: 4.94× the income per person | $3,560#131 of 185 · 2024 | $720#177 of 185 · 2022 |
| GDPLebanon: 1.09× the economy | $25.97B2024 | $23.74B2022 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Lebanon: 2.43× the output per person | $11,917#122 of 184 · 2024 | $4,905#152 of 184 · 2022 |
| GDP growthSyria: 6.9 points higher | −7.1%#187 of 187 · 2024 | −0.2%#175 of 187 · 2022 |
| Inflation | +14.6%#13 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentSyria: 1.24× the unemployment | 11.0%#29 of 178 · 2023 | 13.6%#18 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySyria: 3.1× the share in extreme poverty | 5.8%#52 of 149 · 2022 | 18.0%#37 of 149 · 2022 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Lebanon: 9.1 higher | 35.5#68 of 149 · 2022 | 26.4#140 of 149 · 2022 |
| Jobs in agricultureSyria: 12.8 points higher | 3.5% of jobs#142 of 178 · 2023 | 16.3% of jobs#87 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySyria: 5.1 points higher | 20.1% of jobs#76 of 178 · 2023 | 25.2% of jobs#42 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesLebanon: 17.9 points higher | 76.4% of jobs#26 of 178 · 2023 | 58.5% of jobs#88 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investment | 6.8% of GDP#26 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| ExportsLebanon: 16.5 points higher | 23.3% of GDP#119 of 168 · 2024 | 6.8% of GDP#165 of 168 · 2022 |
| Military spending | 2.5% of GDP#40 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet users | 81%#97 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsLebanon: 1.04× the mobile subscriptions | 74 per 100#154 of 191 · 2022 | 71 per 100#157 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaLebanon: 4.76× the forest share | 14% of land#136 of 192 · 2024 | 3% of land#171 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personLebanon: 1.5× the CO₂ per person | 1.90 t a year#105 of 185 · 2024 | 1.27 t a year#121 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyLebanon: 5.7 points higher | 6.8%#154 of 190 · 2021 | 1.1%#173 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityLebanon: 10.7 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 89.3%#139 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Syria: 1.2× the air pollution | 26.7 µg/m³#57 of 191 · 2023 | 32.1 µg/m³#42 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landLebanon: 12.3 points higher | 13.0% of land#130 of 191 · 2025 | 0.7% of land#185 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSyria: 13.2 points higher | 10.8% of land#94 of 190 · 2024 | 24.0% of land#41 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSyria: 2.12× the water stress | 58.8%#31 of 176 · 2022 | 124.4%#12 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationLebanon: 2.62× the rain and snow | 661 mm#118 of 180 · 2022 | 252 mm#157 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityLebanon: 1.05 higher | −1.27#170 of 193 · 2025 | −2.32#191 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionLebanon: 0.40 higher | −1.22#167 of 193 · 2025 | −1.62#190 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 2.2 per 100,000#74 of 146 · 2020 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republicparliamentary democratic republic | Military or transitionaltransitional presidential republic |
| Capital | Beirut | Damascus |
| Currency | Lebanese pound (LBP) | Syrian pound (SYP) |
| Official languages | Arabic | Arabic |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+2, summer time UTC+3 | UTC+3 |
| Calling code | +961 | +963 |
| Region | Western Asia, Asia | Western 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. Lebanon sits at about 34° N and is stretched to 1.45× its true area; Syria at 35° N is stretched to 1.49×. 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 Lebanon bigger than Syria?
- No. Lebanon is 17.7 times smaller than Syria. Lebanon covers 10,452 km² and Syria covers 185,180 km².
- How many times does Lebanon fit into Syria?
- About 18 times: Syria has 17.7× the area of Lebanon.
- Why do Lebanon and Syria look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Lebanon is drawn about 1.45× its true area there and Syria about 1.49×. 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, Lebanon or Syria?
- Syria: 25,620,427 people against 5,849,421. Density: Lebanon 560 per km², Syria 138 per km².
- Which is richer, Lebanon or Syria?
- By gross national income per person, Lebanon: $3,560 against $720 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2024) — 4.94× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Lebanon or Syria?
- In Lebanon: life expectancy at birth is 77.9 years, against 72.6 — 5.3 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Lebanon and Syria have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Lebanon: parliamentary republic; Syria: military or transitional.