Russia vs South Africa
Russia is 14.0 times larger than South Africa. South Africa would fit into Russia about 14 times.
RussiaSouth AfricaRussia moved onto South Africa · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
14.0×
Russia is 14.0× the area of South Africa.
 Russia |  South Africa | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaRussia: 14.0× the area | 17,075,400 km²#1 of 194 | 1,221,037 km²#24 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 14 | 6 |
| People | ||
| PopulationRussia: 2.22× the population | 143,513,328#9 of 194 · 2025 | 64,747,319#24 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySouth Africa: 6.31× the density | 8.4 / km²#183 of 194 | 53 / km²#132 of 194 |
| Urban populationRussia: 1.18× the urban share | 75%#57 of 192 · 2025 | 64%#93 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSouth Africa: 1.56× the births per woman | 1.42 per woman#154 of 192 · 2024 | 2.21 per woman#86 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSouth Africa: 1.26 points higher | −0.11%#163 of 192 · 2025 | +1.15%#89 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSouth Africa: 2.2× the birth rate | 8.4 per 1,000#163 of 192 · 2024 | 18.5 per 1,000#81 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateRussia: 1.35× the death rate | 12.4 per 1,000#15 of 192 · 2024 | 9.2 per 1,000#50 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15South Africa: 8.7 points higher | 17.0%#142 of 192 · 2025 | 25.7%#87 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Russia: 10.9 points higher | 17.8%#42 of 192 · 2025 | 6.9%#102 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSouth Africa: 4.1 per 1,000 higher | −1.8 per 1,000#137 of 192 · 2025 | +2.3 per 1,000#36 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadRussia: 34.5× the refugees for its size | 0.69 per 1,000#68 of 190 · 2025 | 0.02 per 1,000#145 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyRussia: 7.1 years longer | 73.4 years#101 of 192 · 2024 | 66.3 years#158 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySouth Africa: 5.9× the infant mortality | 4.1 per 1,000 births#150 of 191 · 2024 | 24.2 per 1,000 births#58 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsRussia: 6.47× the doctors per person | 5.11 per 1,000#8 of 178 · 2022 | 0.79 per 1,000#111 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentRussia: 2.57× the university enrolment | 60.4%#56 of 145 · 2024 | 23.5%#109 of 145 · 2023 |
| Human Development IndexRussia: 0.091 higher | 0.832#63 of 190 · 2023 | 0.741#105 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaRussia: 2.55× the income per person | $15,960#63 of 185 · 2025 | $6,270#101 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPRussia: 6.0× the economy | $2.56T2025 | $427.18B2025 |
| Income group | High income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Russia: 3.12× the output per person | $49,568#45 of 184 · 2025 | $15,906#107 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthSouth Africa: 0.1 points higher | +1.0%#156 of 187 · 2025 | +1.1%#152 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationRussia: 5.5 points higher | +8.7%#25 of 176 · 2025 | +3.2%#86 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentSouth Africa: 15.4× the unemployment | 2.1%#161 of 178 · 2025 | 32.4%#2 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySouth Africa: 174× the share in extreme poverty | 0.1%#126 of 149 · 2023 | 17.4%#39 of 149 · 2022 |
| Income inequality (Gini)South Africa: 21.1 higher | 33.0#94 of 149 · 2023 | 54.1#5 of 149 · 2022 |
| Jobs in agricultureSouth Africa: 0.3 points higher | 5.1% of jobs#130 of 178 · 2025 | 5.4% of jobs#128 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryRussia: 5.0 points higher | 25.8% of jobs#39 of 178 · 2025 | 20.8% of jobs#71 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesSouth Africa: 4.7 points higher | 69.1% of jobs#56 of 178 · 2025 | 73.8% of jobs#35 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentRussia: 0.9 points higher | 0.4% of GDP#150 of 184 · 2025 | -0.5% of GDP#171 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsSouth Africa: 13.2 points higher | 18.2% of GDP#138 of 168 · 2025 | 31.4% of GDP#98 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingRussia: 10.1× the military spending | 7.5% of GDP#4 of 155 · 2025 | 0.7% of GDP#132 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersRussia: 1.2× the share online | 94%#28 of 184 · 2024 | 78%#101 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsRussia: 1.04× the mobile subscriptions | 186 per 100#5 of 191 · 2024 | 179 per 100#7 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaRussia: 2.7× the forest share | 51% of land#47 of 192 · 2024 | 19% of land#123 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personRussia: 2.03× the CO₂ per person | 14.0 t a year#12 of 185 · 2024 | 6.88 t a year#33 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energySouth Africa: 6.2 points higher | 3.5%#162 of 190 · 2021 | 9.7%#143 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityRussia: 9.8 points higher | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 90.2%#138 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)South Africa: 2.39× the air pollution | 11.6 µg/m³#141 of 191 · 2023 | 27.7 µg/m³#55 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landRussia: 1.9 points higher | 11.5% of land#138 of 191 · 2025 | 9.6% of land#143 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSouth Africa: 2.5 points higher | 7.4% of land#113 of 190 · 2024 | 9.9% of land#102 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSouth Africa: 16.5× the water stress | 4.1%#129 of 176 · 2022 | 67.6%#26 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSouth Africa: 1.08× the rain and snow | 460 mm#145 of 180 · 2022 | 495 mm#143 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilitySouth Africa: 0.56 higher | −0.94#165 of 193 · 2025 | −0.38#129 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionSouth Africa: 0.85 higher | −0.98#153 of 193 · 2025 | −0.13#87 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateSouth Africa: 6.43× the homicide rate | 6.8 per 100,000#38 of 146 · 2021 | 43.7 per 100,000#5 of 146 · 2022 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Semi-presidential republicsemi-presidential federation | Parliamentary republic |
| Member of | G20, BRICS | G20, BRICS |
| Capital | Moscow | Pretoria |
| Currency | Russian ruble (RUB) | South African rand (ZAR) |
| Official languages | Russian, Ukrainian, Azerbaijani, Tatar, Bashkir, Chechen, Chuvash, Ossetian, Crimean Tatar, Yakut, Avar, Udmurt, Tuvan, Erzya, Adyghe, Komi, Buryat, Lezgian, Karachay-Balkar, Ingush, Mari, Moksha, Kabardian, Abaza, Kalmyk, Khakas, Lak, Kumyk, Nogai, Rutulian, Tabasaran, Tat, Aghul, Tsakhur, Dargwa, Southern Altai | 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+3 · UTC+2 to UTC+12, 11 time zones | UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +7 | +27 |
| Region | Eastern Europe, Europe | 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. Russia sits at about 66° N and is stretched to 6.06× its true area; South Africa at 29° S is stretched to 1.31×. That difference is why Russia looks so much bigger than it is next to South Africa. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Russia bigger than South Africa?
- Yes. Russia is 14.0 times larger than South Africa. Russia covers 17,075,400 km² and South Africa covers 1,221,037 km².
- How many times does South Africa fit into Russia?
- About 14 times: Russia has 14.0× the area of South Africa.
- Why do Russia and South Africa look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Russia is drawn about 6.06× its true area there and South Africa about 1.31×. That is why Russia looks so much bigger than it really is next to South Africa. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Russia or South Africa?
- Russia: 143,513,328 people against 64,747,319. Density: Russia 8.4 per km², South Africa 53 per km².
- Which is richer, Russia or South Africa?
- By gross national income per person, Russia: $15,960 against $6,270 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 2.55× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Russia or South Africa?
- In Russia: life expectancy at birth is 73.4 years, against 66.3 — 7.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Russia and South Africa have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Russia: semi-presidential republic; South Africa: parliamentary republic.