The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
São Tomé and Príncipe fits inside Benin 120 times.
Benin: 114,760 km² (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 960 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
São Tomé and Príncipe’s coastline is 73% longer than Benin’s.
Benin: 121 km (2026 edition) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 209 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
São Tomé and Príncipe’s highest peak towers 1,349 m above Benin’s.
Benin: 675 m (2026 edition) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 2,024 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Benin has 62 times as many people as São Tomé and Príncipe.
Benin: 14.8 million (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 240,254 (2025)
How crowded is it?
São Tomé and Príncipe is 90% more densely populated than Benin.
Benin: 131 per km² (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 250 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in São Tomé and Príncipe are 1.9 cm taller than in Benin.
Benin: 168.4 cm (2019) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 170.4 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in São Tomé and Príncipe are 1.4 cm taller than in Benin.
Benin: 158.4 cm (2019) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 159.8 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in São Tomé and Príncipe is 1.3 years older than in Benin.
Benin: 17.8 years (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 19.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Benin have 0.9 more children on average than in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Benin: 4.48 children per woman (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 3.6 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
3.9% of people in São Tomé and Príncipe are 65 or older, versus 3.2% in Benin.
Benin: 3.2% (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 3.9% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Benin: 0 (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How many official languages?
Benin and São Tomé and Príncipe are practically level.
Benin: 1 (2026) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Benin’s economy is 25 times the size of São Tomé and Príncipe’s.
Benin: $24.6 billion (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: $981 million (2025)
How much is produced per person?
São Tomé and Príncipe produces 33% more per person than Benin.
Benin: Int$4,817 (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: Int$6,388 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in São Tomé and Príncipe than in Benin (Gini 6.3 points higher).
Benin: 34.4 (2021) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 40.7 (2017)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 9.1% in São Tomé and Príncipe, versus 1.6% in Benin.
Benin: 1.6% (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 9.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Benin: 0.7% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How expensive is it?
São Tomé and Príncipe’s price level (US = 100) is 1.9× Benin’s.
Benin: 34% (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 64% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
São Tomé and Príncipe spends 3.7 times as much on health per person as Benin.
Benin: $47 (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: $171 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in São Tomé and Príncipe live 8.9 years longer than in Benin.
Benin: 61 years (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 69.9 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Benin is 4.9 times as likely to die before turning one as in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Benin: 45.2 per 1,000 (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 9.2 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
São Tomé and Príncipe has 2.1 times as many doctors per person as Benin.
Benin: 0.2 per 1,000 (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 0.5 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is obesity?
16% of adults in São Tomé and Príncipe are obese, versus 11% in Benin.
Benin: 10.9% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 16.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
8.3% of adults in São Tomé and Príncipe smoke, versus 7.4% in Benin.
Benin: 7.4% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 8.3% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
Benin: 4.39 (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How much do people drink?
Adults in São Tomé and Príncipe drink 6% more alcohol than in Benin.
Benin: 4.1 litres (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 4.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
São Tomé and Príncipe has 46% more meat per person than Benin.
Benin: 17.3 kg (2022) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 25.2 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Benin has 424 kcal more food per person per day than São Tomé and Príncipe.
Benin: 2,703 kcal (2022) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 2,279 kcal (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in São Tomé and Príncipe went to school 2.8 years longer than in Benin.
Benin: 3.2 years (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 6 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
São Tomé and Príncipe welcomed 6.7 times as many tourists per resident as Benin (2019).
Benin: 0.02 (2019) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 0.16 (2019)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
59% of people in São Tomé and Príncipe are online, versus 34% in Benin.
Benin: 34% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 59% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
78% of people in São Tomé and Príncipe have electricity, versus 59% in Benin.
Benin: 59% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 77.7% (2024)
How many live in cities?
69% of people in São Tomé and Príncipe live in cities, versus 53% in Benin.
Benin: 53% (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 69% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Benin has 126 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, São Tomé and Príncipe 62.
Benin: 126 (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 62 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Benin: 438 km (2014) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How much do they fly?
Airlines from São Tomé and Príncipe fly 2,659 times as many passengers per resident as those from Benin.
Benin: 0 (2016) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 0.16 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 52% of São Tomé and Príncipe, but only 26% of Benin.
Benin: 26.5% (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 52.1% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in São Tomé and Príncipe emits 44% more CO₂ than someone in Benin.
Benin: 0.4 t (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 0.6 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
11% of São Tomé and Príncipe’s electricity is renewable, versus 4.0% in Benin.
Benin: 4% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 11.1% (2023)
How clean is the air?
The air in Benin carries 2.3 times as much fine dust as in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Benin: 35.3 µg/m³ (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 15.6 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Benin are 2.1 times as deadly as in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Benin: 24.8 per 100k (2021) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 11.7 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Benin is on average 2.1 °C warmer than São Tomé and Príncipe.
Benin: 28°C (2016–2025 avg) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 26°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
São Tomé and Príncipe gets 47% more rain than Benin.
Benin: 1,014 mm (2016–2025 avg) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 1,487 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Benin bigger than São Tomé and Príncipe?
Benin is larger. São Tomé and Príncipe fits inside Benin 120 times.
Which has more people, Benin or São Tomé and Príncipe?
Benin has 62 times as many people as São Tomé and Príncipe (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Benin or São Tomé and Príncipe?
People in São Tomé and Príncipe live 8.9 years longer than in Benin. Life expectancy at birth is 61.0 years in Benin and 69.9 in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Are people taller in Benin or São Tomé and Príncipe?
Men in São Tomé and Príncipe are 1.9 cm taller than in Benin (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
