Rwanda vs Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is 8% larger than Rwanda.
RwandaSolomon IslandsRwanda moved onto Solomon Islands · Equal-area projection
0.93×
Rwanda is 0.93× the area of Solomon Islands. Put the other way, Solomon Islands is 1.08× the size of Rwanda.
 Rwanda |  Solomon Islands | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSolomon Islands: 1.08× the area | 26,338 km²#145 of 194 | 28,400 km²#141 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationRwanda: 17.4× the population | 14,569,341#77 of 194 · 2025 | 838,645#160 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityRwanda: 18.7× the density | 553 / km²#14 of 194 | 30 / km²#152 of 194 |
| Urban populationAbout the same urban share | 31%#170 of 192 · 2025 | 31%#169 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateRwanda: 1.04× the births per woman | 3.65 per woman#38 of 192 · 2024 | 3.51 per woman#44 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSolomon Islands: 0.18 points higher | +2.17%#39 of 192 · 2025 | +2.35%#32 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateRwanda: 1.05× the birth rate | 28.1 per 1,000#38 of 192 · 2024 | 26.7 per 1,000#44 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateRwanda: 1.16× the death rate | 5.9 per 1,000#144 of 192 · 2024 | 5.1 per 1,000#168 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Rwanda: 0.4 points higher | 37.0%#41 of 192 · 2025 | 36.6%#44 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Rwanda: 0.3 points higher | 4.0%#142 of 192 · 2025 | 3.7%#149 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationSolomon Islands: 1.5 per 1,000 higher | +0.4 per 1,000#60 of 192 · 2025 | +1.9 per 1,000#40 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadRwanda: 186× the refugees for its size | 16.78 per 1,000#12 of 190 · 2025 | 0.09 per 1,000#119 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancySolomon Islands: 2.7 years longer | 68.0 years#143 of 192 · 2024 | 70.7 years#127 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityRwanda: 1.79× the infant mortality | 29.4 per 1,000 births#48 of 191 · 2024 | 16.4 per 1,000 births#75 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsSolomon Islands: 2.67× the doctors per person | 0.09 per 1,000#168 of 178 · 2022 | 0.24 per 1,000#143 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolment | 9.4%#135 of 145 · 2024 | — |
| Human Development IndexSolomon Islands: 0.006 higher | 0.578#156 of 190 · 2023 | 0.584#153 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaSolomon Islands: 1.76× the income per person | $1,150#165 of 185 · 2025 | $2,020#149 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPRwanda: 9.36× the economy | $16.37B2025 | $1.75B2025 |
| Income group | Low income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Rwanda: 1.49× the output per person | $4,164#160 of 184 · 2025 | $2,788#173 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthRwanda: 5.8 points higher | +9.4%#6 of 187 · 2025 | +3.6%#83 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationRwanda: 2.5 points higher | +5.9%#36 of 176 · 2025 | +3.4%#78 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentRwanda: 8.14× the unemployment | 11.4%#28 of 178 · 2025 | 1.4%#170 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 38.6%#23 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 39.4#42 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureSolomon Islands: 7.4 points higher | 35.1% of jobs#47 of 178 · 2025 | 42.5% of jobs#35 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryRwanda: 10.8 points higher | 18.4% of jobs#99 of 178 · 2025 | 7.6% of jobs#167 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesSolomon Islands: 3.5 points higher | 46.5% of jobs#132 of 178 · 2025 | 50.0% of jobs#120 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentRwanda: 2.1 points higher | 5.9% of GDP#33 of 184 · 2025 | 3.8% of GDP#51 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsSolomon Islands: 19.0 points higher | 21.6% of GDP#128 of 168 · 2025 | 40.6% of GDP#69 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spending | 1.3% of GDP#100 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet usersRwanda: 1.09× the share online | 32%#164 of 184 · 2024 | 29%#167 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsRwanda: 1.5× the mobile subscriptions | 93 per 100#140 of 191 · 2024 | 62 per 100#171 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSolomon Islands: 3.44× the forest share | 26% of land#106 of 192 · 2024 | 90% of land#5 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personSolomon Islands: 2.38× the CO₂ per person | 0.16 t a year#172 of 185 · 2024 | 0.38 t a year#155 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyRwanda: 29.8 points higher | 79.9%#17 of 190 · 2022 | 50.1%#49 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricitySolomon Islands: 9.5 points higher | 72.0%#153 of 192 · 2024 | 81.5%#146 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Rwanda: 3.67× the air pollution | 36.0 µg/m³#30 of 191 · 2023 | 9.8 µg/m³#156 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landRwanda: 6.7 points higher | 9.1% of land#146 of 191 · 2025 | 2.4% of land#178 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landRwanda: 48.1 points higher | 48.9% of land#6 of 190 · 2024 | 0.8% of land#173 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stress | 20.2%#69 of 176 · 2022 | — |
| PrecipitationSolomon Islands: 2.5× the rain and snow | 1,212 mm#74 of 180 · 2022 | 3,028 mm#4 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilitySolomon Islands: 0.63 higher | +0.12#93 of 193 · 2025 | +0.75#53 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionRwanda: 0.80 higher | +0.64#50 of 193 · 2025 | −0.16#90 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | 3.6 per 100,000#60 of 146 · 2020 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Constitutional monarchyparliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm |
| Capital | Kigali | Honiara |
| Currency | Rwandan franc (RWF) | Solomon Islands dollar (SBD) |
| Official languages | English, French, Swahili, Kinyarwanda | English |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+2 | UTC+11 |
| Calling code | +250 | +677 |
| Region | Eastern Africa, Africa | Melanesia, Oceania |
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. Rwanda sits at about 2° S and is stretched to 1.0× its true area; Solomon Islands at 9° S is stretched to 1.02×. 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 Rwanda bigger than Solomon Islands?
- No. Rwanda is 7% smaller than Solomon Islands. Rwanda covers 26,338 km² and Solomon Islands covers 28,400 km².
- How many times does Rwanda fit into Solomon Islands?
- About 1.1 times: Solomon Islands has 1.08× the area of Rwanda.
- Why do Rwanda and Solomon Islands look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Rwanda is drawn about 1.0× its true area there and Solomon Islands about 1.02×. 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, Rwanda or Solomon Islands?
- Rwanda: 14,569,341 people against 838,645. Density: Rwanda 553 per km², Solomon Islands 30 per km².
- Which is richer, Rwanda or Solomon Islands?
- By gross national income per person, Solomon Islands: $2,020 against $1,150 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.76× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Rwanda or Solomon Islands?
- In Solomon Islands: life expectancy at birth is 70.7 years, against 68.0 — 2.7 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Rwanda and Solomon Islands have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Rwanda: presidential republic; Solomon Islands: constitutional monarchy.