Libya vs Mexico
Mexico is 12% larger than Libya.
LibyaMexicoLibya moved onto Mexico · Equal-area projection
0.89×
Libya is 0.89× the area of Mexico. Put the other way, Mexico is 1.12× the size of Libya.
 Libya |  Mexico | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaMexico: 1.12× the area | 1,759,541 km²#16 of 194 | 1,972,550 km²#13 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationMexico: 17.7× the population | 7,458,555#105 of 194 · 2025 | 131,946,900#11 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityMexico: 15.8× the density | 4.2 / km²#187 of 194 | 67 / km²#120 of 194 |
| Urban populationLibya: 1.1× the urban share | 88%#26 of 192 · 2025 | 80%#42 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateLibya: 1.22× the births per woman | 2.30 per woman#80 of 192 · 2024 | 1.89 per woman#101 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthLibya: 0.21 points higher | +1.04%#94 of 192 · 2025 | +0.83%#107 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateLibya: 1.06× the birth rate | 16.5 per 1,000#88 of 192 · 2024 | 15.5 per 1,000#99 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateLibya: 1.05× the death rate | 6.5 per 1,000#122 of 192 · 2024 | 6.2 per 1,000#129 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Libya: 2.7 points higher | 26.8%#83 of 192 · 2025 | 24.1%#98 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Mexico: 3.3 points higher | 5.2%#120 of 192 · 2025 | 8.5%#90 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationLibya: 0.8 per 1,000 higher | 0.0 per 1,000#73 of 192 · 2025 | −0.8 per 1,000#113 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadLibya: 7.42× the refugees for its size | 2.30 per 1,000#39 of 190 · 2025 | 0.31 per 1,000#86 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyMexico: 4.2 years longer | 71.1 years#125 of 192 · 2024 | 75.3 years#84 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityMexico: 1.53× the infant mortality | 7.9 per 1,000 births#124 of 191 · 2024 | 12.1 per 1,000 births#99 of 191 · 2024 |
| Doctors | — | 2.59 per 1,000#72 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | — | 48.2%#78 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexMexico: 0.068 higher | 0.721#114 of 190 · 2023 | 0.789#80 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaMexico: 1.89× the income per person | $7,250#95 of 185 · 2025 | $13,730#69 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPMexico: 38.1× the economy | $48.1B2025 | $1.83T2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Mexico: 1.57× the output per person | $16,521#104 of 184 · 2025 | $25,868#78 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthLibya: 12.8 points higher | +13.4%#2 of 187 · 2025 | +0.6%#164 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationMexico: 2.0 points higher | +1.8%#124 of 176 · 2025 | +3.8%#65 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentLibya: 6.96× the unemployment | 18.8%#9 of 178 · 2025 | 2.7%#149 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 1.6%#77 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 42.6#26 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureMexico: 1.4 points higher | 10.0% of jobs#109 of 178 · 2025 | 11.4% of jobs#104 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryMexico: 5.9 points higher | 18.6% of jobs#97 of 178 · 2025 | 24.5% of jobs#48 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesLibya: 7.3 points higher | 71.4% of jobs#48 of 178 · 2025 | 64.1% of jobs#75 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentMexico: 0.7 points higher | 1.7% of GDP#105 of 184 · 2025 | 2.4% of GDP#78 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsLibya: 32.1 points higher | 71.7% of GDP#21 of 168 · 2025 | 39.6% of GDP#75 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingLibya: 4.82× the military spending | 3.6% of GDP#17 of 155 · 2023 | 0.7% of GDP#132 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersAbout the same share online | 82%#91 of 184 · 2024 | 83%#85 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsLibya: 1.66× the mobile subscriptions | 193 per 100#4 of 191 · 2022 | 116 per 100#93 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaMexico: 342× the forest share | 0% of land#187 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#89 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personLibya: 2.38× the CO₂ per person | 8.66 t a year#21 of 185 · 2024 | 3.64 t a year#71 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyMexico: 9.9 points higher | 3.1%#163 of 190 · 2021 | 13.0%#126 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityMexico: 22.4 points higher | 77.4%#150 of 192 · 2024 | 99.8%#103 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Libya: 1.2× the air pollution | 20.0 µg/m³#84 of 191 · 2023 | 16.6 µg/m³#104 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landMexico: 15.2 points higher | 0.1% of land#187 of 191 · 2025 | 15.3% of land#115 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landMexico: 9.3 points higher | 1.0% of land#171 of 190 · 2024 | 10.3% of land#99 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressLibya: 18.2× the water stress | 817.1%#4 of 176 · 2022 | 44.9%#41 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationMexico: 13.5× the rain and snow | 56 mm#179 of 180 · 2022 | 758 mm#109 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityMexico: 1.23 higher | −1.84#182 of 193 · 2025 | −0.61#149 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionMexico: 0.59 higher | −1.53#183 of 193 · 2025 | −0.94#149 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 24.9 per 100,000#13 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Military or transitionalin transition | Presidential republicfederal presidential republic |
| Member of | OPEC | OECD, G20 |
| Capital | Tripoli | Mexico City |
| Currency | Libyan dinar (LYD) | Mexican peso (MXN) |
| Official languages | Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic | Spanish, Nahuatl, Yucatec Maya |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+2 | UTC−6 · UTC−8 to UTC−5, 4 time zones |
| Calling code | +218 | +52 |
| Region | Northern Africa, Africa | Central America, North America |
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. Libya sits at about 27° N and is stretched to 1.26× its true area; Mexico at 24° N is stretched to 1.2×. 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 Libya bigger than Mexico?
- No. Libya is 11% smaller than Mexico. Libya covers 1,759,541 km² and Mexico covers 1,972,550 km².
- How many times does Libya fit into Mexico?
- About 1.1 times: Mexico has 1.12× the area of Libya.
- Why do Libya and Mexico look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Libya is drawn about 1.26× its true area there and Mexico about 1.2×. 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, Libya or Mexico?
- Mexico: 131,946,900 people against 7,458,555. Density: Libya 4.2 per km², Mexico 67 per km².
- Which is richer, Libya or Mexico?
- By gross national income per person, Mexico: $13,730 against $7,250 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.89× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Libya or Mexico?
- In Mexico: life expectancy at birth is 75.3 years, against 71.1 — 4.2 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Libya and Mexico have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Libya: military or transitional; Mexico: presidential republic.