Liberia vs Sierra Leone
Liberia is 55% larger than Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone would fit into Liberia about 1.6 times.
LiberiaSierra LeoneLiberia moved onto Sierra Leone · Equal-area projection
1.55×
Liberia is 1.55× the area of Sierra Leone.
 Liberia |  Sierra Leone | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaLiberia: 1.55× the area | 111,369 km²#102 of 194 | 71,740 km²#117 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 3 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSierra Leone: 1.54× the population | 5,731,206#116 of 194 · 2025 | 8,819,794#101 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySierra Leone: 2.39× the density | 51 / km²#133 of 194 | 123 / km²#72 of 194 |
| Urban populationLiberia: 1.22× the urban share | 56%#117 of 192 · 2025 | 46%#135 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateLiberia: 1.04× the births per woman | 3.86 per woman#29 of 192 · 2024 | 3.70 per woman#35 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthLiberia: 0.05 points higher | +2.09%#43 of 192 · 2025 | +2.04%#46 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateAbout the same birth rate | 30.6 per 1,000#27 of 192 · 2024 | 30.1 per 1,000#29 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateAbout the same death rate | 8.0 per 1,000#70 of 192 · 2024 | 8.2 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Liberia: 1.4 points higher | 39.1%#28 of 192 · 2025 | 37.7%#35 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65The same | 3.3%#158 of 192 · 2025 | 3.3%#158 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSierra Leone: 0.4 per 1,000 higher | −1.7 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2025 | −1.3 per 1,000#124 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSierra Leone: 1.13× the refugees for its size | 0.89 per 1,000#63 of 190 · 2025 | 1.01 per 1,000#59 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyLiberia: 0.3 years longer | 62.3 years#177 of 192 · 2024 | 62.0 years#181 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityLiberia: 1.16× the infant mortality | 63.2 per 1,000 births#5 of 191 · 2024 | 54.6 per 1,000 births#12 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsLiberia: 1.38× the doctors per person | 0.18 per 1,000#153 of 178 · 2022 | 0.13 per 1,000#164 of 178 · 2022 |
| Human Development IndexLiberia: 0.043 higher | 0.510#174 of 190 · 2023 | 0.467#182 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaAbout the same income per person | $830#174 of 185 · 2025 | $830#174 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPSierra Leone: 1.42× the economy | $5.25B2025 | $7.46B2025 |
| Income group | Low income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Sierra Leone: 1.88× the output per person | $1,981#177 of 184 · 2025 | $3,717#163 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthLiberia: 0.4 points higher | +5.0%#45 of 187 · 2025 | +4.6%#51 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationLiberia: 0.8 points higher | +8.3%#27 of 176 · 2025 | +7.5%#32 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentSierra Leone: 1.1× the unemployment | 2.9%#144 of 178 · 2025 | 3.2%#133 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySierra Leone: 1.24× the share in extreme poverty | 33.6%#27 of 149 · 2016 | 41.5%#18 of 149 · 2018 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Sierra Leone: 0.4 higher | 35.3#70 of 149 · 2016 | 35.7#66 of 149 · 2018 |
| Jobs in agricultureSierra Leone: 3.4 points higher | 41.1% of jobs#39 of 178 · 2025 | 44.5% of jobs#31 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySierra Leone: 3.2 points higher | 8.3% of jobs#163 of 178 · 2025 | 11.5% of jobs#151 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesLiberia: 6.5 points higher | 50.5% of jobs#115 of 178 · 2025 | 44.0% of jobs#140 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentLiberia: 7.1 points higher | 9.5% of GDP#20 of 184 · 2025 | 2.4% of GDP#78 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | — | 20.9% of GDP#133 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingLiberia: 2.3× the military spending | 0.8% of GDP#125 of 155 · 2025 | 0.4% of GDP#148 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersLiberia: 1.28× the share online | 32%#163 of 184 · 2024 | 25%#170 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsSierra Leone: 3.38× the mobile subscriptions | 32 per 100#189 of 191 · 2022 | 108 per 100#114 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaLiberia: 1.94× the forest share | 66% of land#18 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#90 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personSierra Leone: 1.13× the CO₂ per person | 0.15 t a year#174 of 185 · 2024 | 0.17 t a year#170 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyLiberia: 21.2 points higher | 92.8%#3 of 190 · 2022 | 71.6%#25 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricitySierra Leone: 4.3 points higher | 34.9%#184 of 192 · 2024 | 39.2%#182 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Sierra Leone: 1.26× the air pollution | 17.9 µg/m³#98 of 191 · 2023 | 22.5 µg/m³#69 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landSierra Leone: 8.6 points higher | 4.0% of land#171 of 191 · 2025 | 12.6% of land#134 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSierra Leone: 16.7 points higher | 5.2% of land#128 of 190 · 2024 | 21.9% of land#48 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSierra Leone: 1.67× the water stress | 0.3%#168 of 176 · 2022 | 0.5%#165 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSierra Leone: 1.06× the rain and snow | 2,391 mm#15 of 180 · 2022 | 2,526 mm#13 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityLiberia: 0.25 higher | −0.14#113 of 193 · 2025 | −0.39#131 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionSierra Leone: 0.18 higher | −0.96#152 of 193 · 2025 | −0.78#140 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 2.2 per 100,000#74 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Monrovia | Freetown |
| Currency | Liberian dollar (LRD) | Leone (SLE) |
| Official languages | English | English, Krio |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC | UTC |
| Calling code | +231 | +232 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | 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. Liberia sits at about 6° N and is stretched to 1.01× its true area; Sierra Leone at 9° 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 Liberia bigger than Sierra Leone?
- Yes. Liberia is 55% larger than Sierra Leone. Liberia covers 111,369 km² and Sierra Leone covers 71,740 km².
- How many times does Sierra Leone fit into Liberia?
- About 1.6 times: Liberia has 1.55× the area of Sierra Leone.
- Why do Liberia and Sierra Leone look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Liberia is drawn about 1.01× its true area there and Sierra Leone 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, Liberia or Sierra Leone?
- Sierra Leone: 8,819,794 people against 5,731,206. Density: Liberia 51 per km², Sierra Leone 123 per km².
- Which is richer, Liberia or Sierra Leone?
- By gross national income per person, Liberia: $830 against $830 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.0× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Liberia or Sierra Leone?
- In Liberia: life expectancy at birth is 62.3 years, against 62.0 — 0.3 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Liberia and Sierra Leone have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).