Niger vs South Africa
Niger is 4% larger than South Africa.
NigerSouth AfricaNiger moved onto South Africa · Equal-area projection
1.04×
Niger is 1.04× the area of South Africa.
 Niger |  South Africa | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaNiger: 1.04× the area | 1,267,000 km²#21 of 194 | 1,221,037 km²#24 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 7 | 6 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSouth Africa: 2.32× the population | 27,917,831#54 of 194 · 2025 | 64,747,319#24 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySouth Africa: 2.41× the density | 22 / km²#163 of 194 | 53 / km²#132 of 194 |
| Urban populationSouth Africa: 3.47× the urban share | 18%#188 of 192 · 2025 | 64%#93 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateNiger: 2.69× the births per woman | 5.94 per woman#5 of 192 · 2024 | 2.21 per woman#86 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthNiger: 2.07 points higher | +3.22%#9 of 192 · 2025 | +1.15%#89 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateNiger: 2.24× the birth rate | 41.4 per 1,000#4 of 192 · 2024 | 18.5 per 1,000#81 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSouth Africa: 1.06× the death rate | 8.7 per 1,000#58 of 192 · 2024 | 9.2 per 1,000#50 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Niger: 20.5 points higher | 46.2%#3 of 192 · 2025 | 25.7%#87 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65South Africa: 4.3 points higher | 2.6%#180 of 192 · 2025 | 6.9%#102 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSouth Africa: 2.6 per 1,000 higher | −0.3 per 1,000#89 of 192 · 2025 | +2.3 per 1,000#36 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadNiger: 154× the refugees for its size | 3.07 per 1,000#34 of 190 · 2025 | 0.02 per 1,000#145 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancySouth Africa: 4.9 years longer | 61.4 years#182 of 192 · 2024 | 66.3 years#158 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityNiger: 2.71× the infant mortality | 65.6 per 1,000 births#3 of 191 · 2024 | 24.2 per 1,000 births#58 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsSouth Africa: 19.8× the doctors per person | 0.04 per 1,000#177 of 178 · 2023 | 0.79 per 1,000#111 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | — | 23.5%#109 of 145 · 2023 |
| Human Development IndexSouth Africa: 0.322 higher | 0.419#185 of 190 · 2023 | 0.741#105 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaSouth Africa: 8.36× the income per person | $750#176 of 185 · 2025 | $6,270#101 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPSouth Africa: 19.7× the economy | $21.65B2025 | $427.18B2025 |
| Income group | Low income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)South Africa: 7.31× the output per person | $2,177#176 of 184 · 2025 | $15,906#107 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthNiger: 5.9 points higher | +7.0%#18 of 187 · 2025 | +1.1%#152 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationSouth Africa: 7.7 points higher | −4.5%#174 of 176 · 2025 | +3.2%#86 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentSouth Africa: 81.0× the unemployment | 0.4%#176 of 178 · 2025 | 32.4%#2 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyNiger: 3.48× the share in extreme poverty | 60.5%#9 of 149 · 2021 | 17.4%#39 of 149 · 2022 |
| Income inequality (Gini)South Africa: 21.2 higher | 32.9#95 of 149 · 2021 | 54.1#5 of 149 · 2022 |
| Jobs in agricultureNiger: 67.6 points higher | 73.0% of jobs#2 of 178 · 2025 | 5.4% of jobs#128 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySouth Africa: 11.5 points higher | 9.3% of jobs#159 of 178 · 2025 | 20.8% of jobs#71 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesSouth Africa: 56.1 points higher | 17.7% of jobs#177 of 178 · 2025 | 73.8% of jobs#35 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentNiger: 1.7 points higher | 1.2% of GDP#122 of 184 · 2025 | -0.5% of GDP#171 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsSouth Africa: 15.6 points higher | 15.8% of GDP#144 of 168 · 2025 | 31.4% of GDP#98 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingNiger: 2.89× the military spending | 2.1% of GDP#54 of 155 · 2025 | 0.7% of GDP#132 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersSouth Africa: 5.03× the share online | 16%#179 of 184 · 2024 | 78%#101 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsSouth Africa: 2.93× the mobile subscriptions | 61 per 100#175 of 191 · 2024 | 179 per 100#7 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSouth Africa: 23.5× the forest share | 1% of land#181 of 192 · 2024 | 19% of land#123 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personSouth Africa: 57.3× the CO₂ per person | 0.12 t a year#178 of 185 · 2024 | 6.88 t a year#33 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyNiger: 69.9 points higher | 79.6%#18 of 190 · 2021 | 9.7%#143 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricitySouth Africa: 68.9 points higher | 21.3%#187 of 192 · 2024 | 90.2%#138 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Niger: 2.35× the air pollution | 65.2 µg/m³#5 of 191 · 2023 | 27.7 µg/m³#55 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landNiger: 11.4 points higher | 21.0% of land#78 of 191 · 2025 | 9.6% of land#143 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landNiger: 4.1 points higher | 14.0% of land#77 of 190 · 2024 | 9.9% of land#102 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSouth Africa: 6.15× the water stress | 11.0%#88 of 176 · 2022 | 67.6%#26 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSouth Africa: 3.28× the rain and snow | 151 mm#169 of 180 · 2022 | 495 mm#143 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilitySouth Africa: 1.39 higher | −1.77#180 of 193 · 2025 | −0.38#129 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionSouth Africa: 0.61 higher | −0.74#136 of 193 · 2025 | −0.13#87 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 43.7 per 100,000#5 of 146 · 2022 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Military or transitionalformerly, semi-presidential republic | Parliamentary republic |
| Member of | — | G20, BRICS |
| Capital | Niamey | Pretoria |
| Currency | West African CFA franc (XOF) | South African rand (ZAR) |
| Official languages | Hausa | English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa, Sesotho, Tswana, Swazi, Tsonga, Venda, Northern Sotho, Southern Ndebele, South African Sign Language |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +227 | +27 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | Southern 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. Niger sits at about 17° N and is stretched to 1.1× its true area; South Africa at 29° S is stretched to 1.31×. 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 Niger bigger than South Africa?
- Yes. Niger is 4% larger than South Africa. Niger covers 1,267,000 km² and South Africa covers 1,221,037 km².
- How many times does South Africa fit into Niger?
- About 1.0 times: Niger has 1.04× the area of South Africa.
- Why do Niger and South Africa look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Niger is drawn about 1.1× its true area there and South Africa about 1.31×. 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, Niger or South Africa?
- South Africa: 64,747,319 people against 27,917,831. Density: Niger 22 per km², South Africa 53 per km².
- Which is richer, Niger or South Africa?
- By gross national income per person, South Africa: $6,270 against $750 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 8.36× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Niger or South Africa?
- In South Africa: life expectancy at birth is 66.3 years, against 61.4 — 4.9 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Niger and South Africa have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Niger: military or transitional; South Africa: parliamentary republic.