New Zealand vs United States
United States is 36.7 times larger than New Zealand. New Zealand would fit into United States about 37 times.
New ZealandUnited StatesNew Zealand moved onto United States · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
0.03×
New Zealand is 0.03× the area of United States. Put the other way, United States is 36.7× the size of New Zealand.
 New Zealand |  United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaUnited States: 36.7× the area | 268,021 km²#74 of 194 | 9,826,675 km²#3 of 194 |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationUnited States: 64.2× the population | 5,324,700#123 of 194 · 2025 | 341,784,857#3 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityUnited States: 1.75× the density | 20 / km²#167 of 194 | 35 / km²#145 of 194 |
| Urban populationNew Zealand: 1.05× the urban share | 84%#33 of 192 · 2025 | 80%#41 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateUnited States: 1.04× the births per woman | 1.57 per woman#126 of 192 · 2024 | 1.63 per woman#121 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthNew Zealand: 0.13 points higher | +0.65%#116 of 192 · 2025 | +0.52%#125 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateNew Zealand: 1.04× the birth rate | 11.0 per 1,000#125 of 192 · 2024 | 10.6 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateUnited States: 1.27× the death rate | 7.1 per 1,000#97 of 192 · 2024 | 9.0 per 1,000#52 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15New Zealand: 0.8 points higher | 17.9%#129 of 192 · 2025 | 17.1%#140 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65United States: 0.8 points higher | 17.6%#43 of 192 · 2025 | 18.4%#38 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationUnited States: 0.3 per 1,000 higher | +3.3 per 1,000#28 of 192 · 2025 | +3.6 per 1,000#26 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadAbout as many refugees for its size | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyNew Zealand: 3.1 years longer | 82.0 years#29 of 192 · 2024 | 78.9 years#46 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityUnited States: 1.38× the infant mortality | 4.0 per 1,000 births#155 of 191 · 2024 | 5.5 per 1,000 births#139 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsAbout as many doctors per person | 3.61 per 1,000#41 of 178 · 2022 | 3.68 per 1,000#39 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentAbout the same university enrolment | 77.2%#32 of 145 · 2024 | 79.4%#27 of 145 · 2022 |
| Human Development IndexThe same | 0.938#16 of 190 · 2023 | 0.938#16 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaUnited States: 1.9× the income per person | $46,630#24 of 185 · 2025 | $88,810#5 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPUnited States: 117× the economy | $264.06B2025 | $30.77T2025 |
| Income group | High income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)United States: 1.57× the output per person | $57,350#35 of 184 · 2025 | $90,027#9 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthUnited States: 1.7 points higher | +0.5%#168 of 187 · 2025 | +2.2%#126 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationUnited States: 0.1 points higher | +2.8%#95 of 176 · 2025 | +2.9%#92 of 176 · 2024 |
| UnemploymentNew Zealand: 1.21× the unemployment | 5.1%#88 of 178 · 2025 | 4.2%#110 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 1.1%#82 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 41.8#30 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureNew Zealand: 3.9 points higher | 5.4% of jobs#128 of 178 · 2025 | 1.5% of jobs#164 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryNew Zealand: 1.0 points higher | 19.9% of jobs#79 of 178 · 2025 | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesUnited States: 5.0 points higher | 74.6% of jobs#30 of 178 · 2025 | 79.6% of jobs#16 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentNew Zealand: 0.3 points higher | 1.3% of GDP#117 of 184 · 2025 | 1.0% of GDP#126 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsNew Zealand: 13.7 points higher | 24.7% of GDP#116 of 168 · 2024 | 11.0% of GDP#159 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spendingUnited States: 2.84× the military spending | 1.1% of GDP#106 of 155 · 2025 | 3.1% of GDP#27 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersAbout the same share online | 94%#36 of 184 · 2024 | 95%#27 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsNew Zealand: 1.15× the mobile subscriptions | 130 per 100#52 of 191 · 2024 | 113 per 100#102 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaNew Zealand: 1.15× the forest share | 39% of land#69 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#92 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personUnited States: 2.27× the CO₂ per person | 6.01 t a year#39 of 185 · 2024 | 13.6 t a year#13 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyNew Zealand: 18.0 points higher | 28.9%#82 of 190 · 2021 | 10.9%#139 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)About the same air pollution | 6.9 µg/m³#175 of 191 · 2023 | 7.0 µg/m³#173 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landNew Zealand: 20.5 points higher | 33.4% of land#26 of 191 · 2025 | 12.9% of land#131 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landUnited States: 14.6 points higher | 2.0% of land#161 of 190 · 2024 | 16.6% of land#64 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressUnited States: 3.52× the water stress | 8.0%#99 of 176 · 2022 | 28.2%#57 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationNew Zealand: 2.42× the rain and snow | 1,732 mm#44 of 180 · 2022 | 715 mm#111 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityNew Zealand: 1.48 higher | +1.18#24 of 193 · 2025 | −0.30#122 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionNew Zealand: 1.02 higher | +1.89#8 of 193 · 2025 | +0.87#39 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateUnited States: 3.87× the homicide rate | 1.5 per 100,000#86 of 146 · 2022 | 5.8 per 100,000#46 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Constitutional monarchyparliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm | Presidential republicconstitutional federal republic |
| Member of | OECD | NATO, OECD, G7, G20 |
| Capital | Wellington | Washington D.C. |
| Currency | New Zealand dollar (NZD) | United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | English, Māori, New Zealand Sign Language | English |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+12, summer time UTC+13 · UTC+12 to UTC+12:45, 2 time zones | UTC−5, summer time UTC−4 · UTC−10 to UTC−5, 6 time zones |
| Calling code | +64 | +1 |
| Region | Australia and New Zealand, Oceania | Northern 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. New Zealand sits at about 42° S and is stretched to 1.79× its true area; United States at 45° N is stretched to 1.98×. 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 New Zealand bigger than United States?
- No. New Zealand is 36.7 times smaller than United States. New Zealand covers 268,021 km² and United States covers 9,826,675 km².
- How many times does New Zealand fit into United States?
- About 37 times: United States has 36.7× the area of New Zealand.
- Why do New Zealand and United States look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. New Zealand is drawn about 1.79× its true area there and United States about 1.98×. 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, New Zealand or United States?
- United States: 341,784,857 people against 5,324,700. Density: New Zealand 20 per km², United States 35 per km².
- Which is richer, New Zealand or United States?
- By gross national income per person, United States: $88,810 against $46,630 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.9× as much.
- Where do people live longer, New Zealand or United States?
- In New Zealand: life expectancy at birth is 82.0 years, against 78.9 — 3.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do New Zealand and United States have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — New Zealand: constitutional monarchy; United States: presidential republic.