The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Bangladesh is 50% bigger than the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 147,570 km² (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 98,648 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
The United Arab Emirates’ coastline is 2.3 times as long as Bangladesh’s.
Bangladesh: 580 km (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,318 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
The United Arab Emirates’ highest peak towers 845 m above Bangladesh’s.
Bangladesh: 1,060 m (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,905 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Bangladesh has 15 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 176 million (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 11.5 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Bangladesh is 8.3 times as densely populated as the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 1,352 per km² (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 162 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the United Arab Emirates are 9.0 cm taller than in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 165.1 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 174.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the United Arab Emirates are 8.2 cm taller than in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 152.4 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 160.5 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the United Arab Emirates is 5.9 years older than in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 25.3 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 31.2 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Bangladesh have 0.9 more children on average than in the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 2.14 children per woman (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 1.21 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
6.7% of people in Bangladesh are 65 or older, versus 1.8% in the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 6.7% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 1.8% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Bangladesh has produced 0.1 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, the United Arab Emirates 0.0.
Bangladesh: 0.1 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates are practically level.
Bangladesh: 1 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The United Arab Emirates’ economy is 21% larger than Bangladesh’s.
Bangladesh: $456 billion (2025) · United Arab Emirates: $552 billion (2024)
How much is produced per person?
The United Arab Emirates produces 7.8 times as much per person as Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: Int$10,154 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: Int$79,344 (2024)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Bangladesh than in the United Arab Emirates (Gini 4.5 points higher).
Bangladesh: 30.9 (2022) · United Arab Emirates: 26.4 (2018)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 3.8% in Bangladesh, versus 2.2% in the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 3.8% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 2.2% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
The United Arab Emirates spends 5.6% of its GDP on the military, Bangladesh 0.9%.
Bangladesh: 0.9% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2014)
How expensive is it?
The United Arab Emirates’ price level (US = 100) is 2.5× Bangladesh’s.
Bangladesh: 26% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 63% (2024)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United Arab Emirates spends 45 times as much on health per person as Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: $53 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: $2,402 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 8.1 years longer than in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 74.9 years (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 83.1 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Bangladesh is 6.4 times as likely to die before turning one as in the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 24.4 per 1,000 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 3.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The United Arab Emirates has 4.1 times as many doctors per person as Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 0.7 per 1,000 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
30% of adults in the United Arab Emirates are obese, versus 5.7% in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 5.7% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 30.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
32% of adults in Bangladesh smoke, versus 9.0% in the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 32% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 9% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in the United Arab Emirates rate their lives 2.50 points higher than in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 4.32 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in the United Arab Emirates drink 221 times as much alcohol as in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 0.0029 litres (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 0.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The United Arab Emirates has 15 times as much meat per person as Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 4.5 kg (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 67.8 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The United Arab Emirates has 537 kcal more food per person per day than Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 2,588 kcal (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3,125 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the United Arab Emirates put in 131 more hours a year than in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 2,383 hours (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 2,514 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the United Arab Emirates went to school 6.2 years longer than in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 6.8 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 13 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The United Arab Emirates welcomed 1,165 times as many tourists per resident as Bangladesh (2019).
Bangladesh: 0 (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 2.28 (2019)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
100% of people in the United Arab Emirates are online, versus 53% in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 53% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in the United Arab Emirates have electricity, versus 100% in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 99.5% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
86% of people in the United Arab Emirates live in cities, versus 33% in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 33% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 86% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The United Arab Emirates has 203 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Bangladesh 108.
Bangladesh: 108 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 203 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Bangladesh’s railway network is 10 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’.
Bangladesh: 2,877 km (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 279 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United Arab Emirates fly 210 times as many passengers per resident as those from Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 0.04 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 7.91 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 14% of Bangladesh, but only 4.5% of the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 14.5% (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 4.5% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the United Arab Emirates emits 32 times as much CO₂ as someone in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 0.6 t (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 20.1 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
8.8% of the United Arab Emirates’ electricity is renewable, versus 2.1% in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 2.1% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 8.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in Bangladesh carries 17% more fine dust than in the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 65 µg/m³ (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 55.7 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 3.4 times as likely to be murdered in Bangladesh as in the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 2.3 per 100k (2018) · United Arab Emirates: 0.7 per 100k (2022)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Bangladesh are 3.2 times as deadly as in the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 18.6 per 100k (2021) · United Arab Emirates: 5.9 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
The United Arab Emirates is on average 3.1 °C warmer than Bangladesh.
Bangladesh: 25.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 28.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Bangladesh gets 45 times as much rain as the United Arab Emirates.
Bangladesh: 2,096 mm (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 47 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Bangladesh bigger than the United Arab Emirates?
Bangladesh is larger. Bangladesh is 50% bigger than the United Arab Emirates.
Which has more people, Bangladesh or the United Arab Emirates?
Bangladesh has 15 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Bangladesh or the United Arab Emirates?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 8.1 years longer than in Bangladesh. Life expectancy at birth is 74.9 years in Bangladesh and 83.1 in the United Arab Emirates.
Are people taller in Bangladesh or the United Arab Emirates?
Men in the United Arab Emirates are 9.0 cm taller than in Bangladesh (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
