Mauritania vs Western Sahara
Mauritania is 3.87 times larger than Western Sahara. Western Sahara would fit into Mauritania about 3.9 times.
MauritaniaWestern SaharaMauritania moved onto Western Sahara · Equal-area projection
3.87×
Mauritania is 3.87× the area of Western Sahara.
 Mauritania |  Western Sahara | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaMauritania: 3.87× the area | 1,030,700 km²#28 of 194 | 266,000 km² |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationMauritania: 8.68× the population | 5,315,065#124 of 194 · 2025 | 612,0002021 |
| DensityMauritania: 2.24× the density | 5.2 / km²#185 of 194 | 2.3 / km² |
| Urban population | 62%#102 of 192 · 2025 | — |
| Fertility rate | 4.63 per woman#11 of 192 · 2024 | — |
| Population growth | +2.78%#18 of 192 · 2025 | — |
| Birth rate | 34.0 per 1,000#13 of 192 · 2024 | — |
| Death rate | 5.4 per 1,000#161 of 192 · 2024 | — |
| Children under 15 | 42.4%#12 of 192 · 2025 | — |
| People over 65 | 3.2%#161 of 192 · 2025 | — |
| Net migration | −0.9 per 1,000#114 of 192 · 2025 | — |
| Refugees abroad | 8.26 per 1,000#22 of 190 · 2025 | — |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancy | 68.7 years#139 of 192 · 2024 | — |
| Infant mortality | 30.2 per 1,000 births#47 of 191 · 2024 | — |
| Doctors | 0.26 per 1,000#141 of 178 · 2022 | — |
| University enrolment | 6.0%#140 of 145 · 2020 | — |
| Human Development Index | 0.563#160 of 190 · 2023 | — |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | $2,210#145 of 185 · 2025 | — |
| GDP | $11.68B2025 | — |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | — |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $7,676#139 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| GDP growth | +4.0%#69 of 187 · 2025 | — |
| Inflation | +1.5%#128 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| Unemployment | 10.3%#34 of 178 · 2025 | — |
| Extreme poverty | 10.2%#45 of 149 · 2019 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 32.0#103 of 149 · 2019 | — |
| Jobs in agriculture | 32.1% of jobs#55 of 178 · 2025 | — |
| Jobs in industry | 15.0% of jobs#137 of 178 · 2025 | — |
| Jobs in services | 52.8% of jobs#105 of 178 · 2025 | — |
| Foreign investment | 5.4% of GDP#34 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| Exports | 39.9% of GDP#73 of 168 · 2025 | — |
| Military spending | 2.8% of GDP#37 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet users | 46%#149 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptions | 92 per 100#141 of 191 · 2024 | — |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest area | 1% of land#179 of 192 · 2024 | — |
| CO₂ per person | 0.97 t a year#129 of 185 · 2024 | — |
| Renewable energy | 19.6%#108 of 190 · 2022 | — |
| Access to electricity | 52.2%#177 of 192 · 2024 | — |
| Air pollution (PM2.5) | 46.5 µg/m³#16 of 191 · 2023 | — |
| Protected land | 0.6% of land#186 of 191 · 2025 | — |
| Arable land | 0.4% of land#183 of 190 · 2024 | — |
| Water stress | 13.2%#78 of 176 · 2022 | — |
| Precipitation | 92 mm#173 of 180 · 2022 | — |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stability | −0.65#152 of 193 · 2025 | — |
| Control of corruption | −0.95#151 of 193 · 2025 | — |
| Homicide rate | 1.0 per 100,000#107 of 146 · 2020 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Status disputed |
| Government | Presidential republic | —legal status of territory and issue of sovereignty unresolved; territory contested by Morocco and Polisario Front (Popular Front for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro), which in February 1976 formally proclaimed a government-in-exile of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), near Tindouf, Algeria, led by President Mohamed ABDELAZIZ until his death in May 2016; current President Brahim GHALI elected in July 2016; territory partitioned between Morocco and Mauritania in April 1976 when Spain withdrew, with Morocco acquiring northern two-thirds; Mauritania, under pressure from Polisario guerrillas, abandoned all claims to its portion in August 1979; Morocco moved to occupy that sector shortly thereafter and has since asserted administrative control; the Polisario's government-in-exile was seated as an Organization of African Unity (OAU) member in 1984; Morocco between 1980 and 1987 built a fortified sand berm delineating the roughly 75% of Western Sahara west of the barrier that currently is controlled by Morocco; guerrilla activities continued sporadically until a UN-monitored cease-fire was implemented on 6 September 1991 (Security Council Resolution 690) by the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) |
| Capital | Nouakchott | — |
| Currency | Mauritanian ouguiya (MRU) | Moroccan dirham (MAD) |
| Official languages | Arabic | Arabic |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC | UTC+1 |
| Calling code | +222 | +212 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | Northern 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. Mauritania sits at about 20° N and is stretched to 1.14× its true area; Western Sahara 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 Mauritania bigger than Western Sahara?
- Yes. Mauritania is 3.87 times larger than Western Sahara. Mauritania covers 1,030,700 km² and Western Sahara covers 266,000 km².
- How many times does Western Sahara fit into Mauritania?
- About 3.9 times: Mauritania has 3.87× the area of Western Sahara.
- Why do Mauritania and Western Sahara look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Mauritania is drawn about 1.14× its true area there and Western Sahara 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, Mauritania or Western Sahara?
- Mauritania: 5,315,065 people against 612,000. Density: Mauritania 5.2 per km², Western Sahara 2.3 per km².