Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Vanuatu fits inside Australia 635 times
Australia: 7,741,220 km² (2024) · Vanuatu: 12,189 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Australia’s coastline is 10 times as long as Vanuatu’s
Australia: 25,760 km (2026 edition) · Vanuatu: 2,528 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Australia’s highest peak towers 351 m above Vanuatu’s
Australia: 2,228 m (2026 edition) · Vanuatu: 1,877 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 47% of Australia, versus 13% of Vanuatu
Australia: 47.3% (2024) · Vanuatu: 13.3% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Australia has 82 times as many people as Vanuatu
Australia: 27.6 million (2025) · Vanuatu: 335,169 (2025)
How crowded is it?
Vanuatu is 7.7 times as densely populated as Australia
Australia: 4 per km² (2025) · Vanuatu: 27 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Australia are 10.5 cm taller than in Vanuatu
Australia: 178.8 cm (2019) · Vanuatu: 168.3 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Australia are 4.2 cm taller than in Vanuatu
Australia: 164.7 cm (2019) · Vanuatu: 160.5 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Australia is 18 years older than in Vanuatu
Australia: 37.8 years (2023) · Vanuatu: 20.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Vanuatu have 2.1 more children on average than in Australia
Australia: 1.48 children per woman (2024) · Vanuatu: 3.57 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
18% of people in Australia are 65 or older, versus 4.4% in Vanuatu
Australia: 18.1% (2025) · Vanuatu: 4.4% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Australia: 1.2 per 1,000 (2025) · Vanuatu: 0 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Australia: 3.6 (2026) · Vanuatu: no data
How many official languages?
Vanuatu has 3 official languages, Australia 1
Australia: 1 (2026) · Vanuatu: 3 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Australia’s economy is 1,329 times the size of Vanuatu’s
Australia: $1.8 trillion (2025) · Vanuatu: $1.35 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Australia produces 16 times as much per person as Vanuatu
Australia: Int$71,934 (2025) · Vanuatu: Int$4,525 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Australia than in Vanuatu (Gini 1.5 points higher)
Australia: 33.8 (2020) · Vanuatu: 32.3 (2019)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
20% of people in Vanuatu live on less than $3 a day, versus 0.9% in Australia
Australia: 0.9% (2020) · Vanuatu: 19.5% (2019)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 5.1% in Vanuatu, versus 4.1% in Australia
Australia: 4.1% (2025) · Vanuatu: 5.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Australia: 1.9% (2025) · Vanuatu: no data
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Australia’s central government collects 24% of GDP in tax, Vanuatu’s 17%
Australia: 23.6% (2022) · Vanuatu: 16.5% (2023)
How expensive is it?
Australia’s price level (US = 100) is 1× Vanuatu’s
Australia: 91% (2025) · Vanuatu: 89% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Australia spends 49 times as much on health per person as Vanuatu
Australia: $6,980 (2023) · Vanuatu: $143 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Australia live 11 years longer than in Vanuatu
Australia: 83.1 years (2024) · Vanuatu: 71.7 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Vanuatu is 4.6 times as likely to die before turning one as in Australia
Australia: 3.1 per 1,000 (2024) · Vanuatu: 14.4 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Australia has 25 times as many doctors per person as Vanuatu
Australia: 4.1 per 1,000 (2022) · Vanuatu: 0.2 per 1,000 (2019)
How many hospital beds are there?
Australia: 3.8 per 1,000 (2016) · Vanuatu: no data
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Vanuatu is 30% higher than in Australia
Australia: 12.6 per 100k (2023) · Vanuatu: 16.4 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
32% of adults in Australia are obese, versus 22% in Vanuatu
Australia: 32.4% (2024) · Vanuatu: 21.6% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
25% of adults in Vanuatu smoke, versus 12% in Australia
Australia: 11.6% (2024) · Vanuatu: 24.9% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
Australia: 6.92 (2025) · Vanuatu: no data
How much do people drink?
Adults in Australia drink 5 times as much alcohol as in Vanuatu
Australia: 10.5 litres (2023) · Vanuatu: 2.1 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Australia has 2.8 times as much meat per person as Vanuatu
Australia: 116.8 kg (2023) · Vanuatu: 41 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Australia has 653 kcal more food per person per day than Vanuatu
Australia: 3,562 kcal (2023) · Vanuatu: 2,909 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Australia: 1,611 hours (2023) · Vanuatu: no data
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Australia went to school 5.7 years longer than in Vanuatu
Australia: 12.9 years (2023) · Vanuatu: 7.2 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Australia: no data · Vanuatu: 0.1 (2022)
How many World Heritage sites?
Australia has 20 more World Heritage sites than Vanuatu (21 against 1)
Australia: 21 (2026) · Vanuatu: 1 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Australia has won 619 Olympic medals, Vanuatu none
Australia: 619 (2026 edition) · Vanuatu: 0 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
96% of people in Australia are online, versus 22% in Vanuatu
Australia: 96% (2024) · Vanuatu: 22% (2015)
How fast is home internet?
Australia: 261 Mbps (2026) · Vanuatu: no data
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in Australia have electricity, versus 66% in Vanuatu
Australia: 100% (2024) · Vanuatu: 65.5% (2024)
How many live in cities?
88% of people in Australia live in cities, versus 22% in Vanuatu
Australia: 88% (2025) · Vanuatu: 22% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Australia has 113 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Vanuatu 89
Australia: 113 (2024) · Vanuatu: 89 (2023)
How much railway is there?
Australia: 32,606 km (2022) · Vanuatu: no data
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Australia fly 2.3 times as many passengers per resident as those from Vanuatu
Australia: 2.5 (2023) · Vanuatu: 1.07 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 75% of Vanuatu, but only 17% of Australia
Australia: 17.4% (2024) · Vanuatu: 74.6% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Australia emits 24 times as much CO₂ as someone in Vanuatu
Australia: 14.5 t (2024) · Vanuatu: 0.6 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
39% of Australia’s electricity is renewable, versus 25% in Vanuatu
Australia: 38.6% (2025) · Vanuatu: 25% (2023)
How clean is the air?
The air in Vanuatu carries 7% more fine dust than in Australia
Australia: 5.4 µg/m³ (2024) · Vanuatu: 5.8 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 2.6 times as likely to be murdered in Australia as in Vanuatu
Australia: 0.9 per 100k (2023) · Vanuatu: 0.3 per 100k (2020)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Vanuatu are 2 times as deadly as in Australia
Australia: 7.5 per 100k (2023) · Vanuatu: 14.9 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Vanuatu is on average 2.8 °C warmer than Australia
Australia: 22.5°C (2016–2025 avg) · Vanuatu: 25.3°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Vanuatu gets 5.4 times as much rain as Australia
Australia: 447 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Vanuatu: 2,432 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is Australia bigger than Vanuatu?
Australia is larger. Vanuatu fits inside Australia 635 times.
Which has more people, Australia or Vanuatu?
Australia has 82 times as many people as Vanuatu (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Australia or Vanuatu?
People in Australia live 11 years longer than in Vanuatu. Life expectancy at birth is 83.1 years in Australia and 71.7 in Vanuatu.
Are people taller in Australia or Vanuatu?
Men in Australia are 10.5 cm taller than in Vanuatu (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).