South Africa vs United States
United States is 8.05 times larger than South Africa. South Africa would fit into United States about 8.0 times.
South AfricaUnited StatesSouth Africa moved onto United States · Equal-area projection
Remote islands and overseas parts not drawn; the figures include them
0.12×
South Africa is 0.12× the area of United States. Put the other way, United States is 8.05× the size of South Africa.
 South Africa |  United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaUnited States: 8.05× the area | 1,221,037 km²#24 of 194 | 9,826,675 km²#3 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationUnited States: 5.28× the population | 64,747,319#24 of 194 · 2025 | 341,784,857#3 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensitySouth Africa: 1.52× the density | 53 / km²#132 of 194 | 35 / km²#145 of 194 |
| Urban populationUnited States: 1.26× the urban share | 64%#93 of 192 · 2025 | 80%#41 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSouth Africa: 1.36× the births per woman | 2.21 per woman#86 of 192 · 2024 | 1.63 per woman#121 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSouth Africa: 0.63 points higher | +1.15%#89 of 192 · 2025 | +0.52%#125 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSouth Africa: 1.75× the birth rate | 18.5 per 1,000#81 of 192 · 2024 | 10.6 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateAbout the same death rate | 9.2 per 1,000#50 of 192 · 2024 | 9.0 per 1,000#52 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15South Africa: 8.6 points higher | 25.7%#87 of 192 · 2025 | 17.1%#140 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65United States: 11.5 points higher | 6.9%#102 of 192 · 2025 | 18.4%#38 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationUnited States: 1.3 per 1,000 higher | +2.3 per 1,000#36 of 192 · 2025 | +3.6 per 1,000#26 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSouth Africa: 2.0× the refugees for its size | 0.02 per 1,000#145 of 190 · 2025 | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyUnited States: 12.6 years longer | 66.3 years#158 of 192 · 2024 | 78.9 years#46 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySouth Africa: 4.4× the infant mortality | 24.2 per 1,000 births#58 of 191 · 2024 | 5.5 per 1,000 births#139 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsUnited States: 4.66× the doctors per person | 0.79 per 1,000#111 of 178 · 2022 | 3.68 per 1,000#39 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentUnited States: 3.38× the university enrolment | 23.5%#109 of 145 · 2023 | 79.4%#27 of 145 · 2022 |
| Human Development IndexUnited States: 0.197 higher | 0.741#105 of 190 · 2023 | 0.938#16 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaUnited States: 14.2× the income per person | $6,270#101 of 185 · 2025 | $88,810#5 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPUnited States: 72× the economy | $427.18B2025 | $30.77T2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)United States: 5.66× the output per person | $15,906#107 of 184 · 2025 | $90,027#9 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthUnited States: 1.1 points higher | +1.1%#152 of 187 · 2025 | +2.2%#126 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationSouth Africa: 0.3 points higher | +3.2%#86 of 176 · 2025 | +2.9%#92 of 176 · 2024 |
| UnemploymentSouth Africa: 7.71× the unemployment | 32.4%#2 of 178 · 2025 | 4.2%#110 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySouth Africa: 15.8× the share in extreme poverty | 17.4%#39 of 149 · 2022 | 1.1%#82 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini)South Africa: 12.3 higher | 54.1#5 of 149 · 2022 | 41.8#30 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureSouth Africa: 3.9 points higher | 5.4% of jobs#128 of 178 · 2025 | 1.5% of jobs#164 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySouth Africa: 1.9 points higher | 20.8% of jobs#71 of 178 · 2025 | 18.9% of jobs#90 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesUnited States: 5.8 points higher | 73.8% of jobs#35 of 178 · 2025 | 79.6% of jobs#16 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentUnited States: 1.5 points higher | -0.5% of GDP#171 of 184 · 2025 | 1.0% of GDP#126 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsSouth Africa: 20.4 points higher | 31.4% of GDP#98 of 168 · 2025 | 11.0% of GDP#159 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spendingUnited States: 4.22× the military spending | 0.7% of GDP#132 of 155 · 2025 | 3.1% of GDP#27 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersUnited States: 1.21× the share online | 78%#101 of 184 · 2024 | 95%#27 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsSouth Africa: 1.58× the mobile subscriptions | 179 per 100#7 of 191 · 2024 | 113 per 100#102 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaUnited States: 1.8× the forest share | 19% of land#123 of 192 · 2024 | 34% of land#92 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personUnited States: 1.98× the CO₂ per person | 6.88 t a year#33 of 185 · 2024 | 13.6 t a year#13 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyUnited States: 1.2 points higher | 9.7%#143 of 190 · 2021 | 10.9%#139 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityUnited States: 9.8 points higher | 90.2%#138 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)South Africa: 3.96× the air pollution | 27.7 µg/m³#55 of 191 · 2023 | 7.0 µg/m³#173 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landUnited States: 3.3 points higher | 9.6% of land#143 of 191 · 2025 | 12.9% of land#131 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landUnited States: 6.7 points higher | 9.9% of land#102 of 190 · 2024 | 16.6% of land#64 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressSouth Africa: 2.4× the water stress | 67.6%#26 of 176 · 2022 | 28.2%#57 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationUnited States: 1.44× the rain and snow | 495 mm#143 of 180 · 2022 | 715 mm#111 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityUnited States: 0.08 higher | −0.38#129 of 193 · 2025 | −0.30#122 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionUnited States: 1.00 higher | −0.13#87 of 193 · 2025 | +0.87#39 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateSouth Africa: 7.53× the homicide rate | 43.7 per 100,000#5 of 146 · 2022 | 5.8 per 100,000#46 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republic | Presidential republicconstitutional federal republic |
| Member of | G20, BRICS | NATO, OECD, G7, G20 |
| Capital | Pretoria | Washington D.C. |
| Currency | South African rand (ZAR) | United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa, Sesotho, Tswana, Swazi, Tsonga, Venda, Northern Sotho, Southern Ndebele, South African Sign Language | English |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+2 | UTC−5, summer time UTC−4 · UTC−10 to UTC−5, 6 time zones |
| Calling code | +27 | +1 |
| Region | Southern Africa, Africa | 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. South Africa sits at about 29° S and is stretched to 1.31× its true area; United States at 45° N is stretched to 1.98×. That difference is why United States 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 South Africa bigger than United States?
- No. South Africa is 8.05 times smaller than United States. South Africa covers 1,221,037 km² and United States covers 9,826,675 km².
- How many times does South Africa fit into United States?
- About 8.0 times: United States has 8.05× the area of South Africa.
- Why do South Africa and United States look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. South Africa is drawn about 1.31× its true area there and United States about 1.98×. That is why United States 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, South Africa or United States?
- United States: 341,784,857 people against 64,747,319. Density: South Africa 53 per km², United States 35 per km².
- Which is richer, South Africa or United States?
- By gross national income per person, United States: $88,810 against $6,270 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 14.2× as much.
- Where do people live longer, South Africa or United States?
- In United States: life expectancy at birth is 78.9 years, against 66.3 — 12.6 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do South Africa and United States have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — South Africa: parliamentary republic; United States: presidential republic.