The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The United Arab Emirates fits inside Brazil 86 times.
Brazil: 8,510,420 km² (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 98,648 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Brazil’s coastline is 5.7 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’.
Brazil: 7,491 km (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,318 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Brazil’s highest peak towers 1,089 m above the United Arab Emirates’.
Brazil: 2,994 m (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,905 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Brazil has 18 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 213 million (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 11.5 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The United Arab Emirates is 6.4 times as densely populated as Brazil.
Brazil: 25 per km² (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 162 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Brazil are 1.6 cm taller than in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 175.7 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 174.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Brazil are 1.9 cm taller than in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 162.4 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 160.5 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Brazil is 2.7 years older than in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 33.9 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 31.2 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Brazil have 0.4 more children on average than in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 1.61 children per woman (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 1.21 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
11% of people in Brazil are 65 or older, versus 1.8% in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 11.5% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 1.8% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Brazil and the United Arab Emirates are practically level.
Brazil: 0 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Brazil and the United Arab Emirates are practically level.
Brazil: 1 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Brazil’s economy is 4.1 times the size of the United Arab Emirates’.
Brazil: $2.28 trillion (2025) · United Arab Emirates: $552 billion (2024)
How much is produced per person?
The United Arab Emirates produces 3.4 times as much per person as Brazil.
Brazil: Int$23,433 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: Int$79,344 (2024)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Brazil than in the United Arab Emirates (Gini 23.9 points higher).
Brazil: 50.3 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 26.4 (2018)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 6.0% in Brazil, versus 2.2% in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 6% (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, Brazil 1.0%.
Brazil: 1% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2014)
How expensive is it?
The United Arab Emirates’ price level (US = 100) is 1.4× Brazil’s.
Brazil: 46% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 63% (2024)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United Arab Emirates spends 2.4 times as much on health per person as Brazil.
Brazil: $1,010 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: $2,402 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 7 years longer than in Brazil.
Brazil: 76 years (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 83.1 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Brazil is 3.2 times as likely to die before turning one as in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 12.3 per 1,000 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 3.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The United Arab Emirates has 27% more doctors per person than Brazil.
Brazil: 2.4 per 1,000 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
31% of adults in Brazil are obese, versus 30% in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 30.9% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 30.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
12% of adults in Brazil smoke, versus 9.0% in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 11.9% (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 0.19 points higher than in Brazil.
Brazil: 6.63 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Brazil drink 16 times as much alcohol as in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 10.4 litres (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 0.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Brazil has 54% more meat per person than the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 104.6 kg (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 67.8 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Brazil has 298 kcal more food per person per day than the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 3,423 kcal (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3,125 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the United Arab Emirates put in 521 more hours a year than in Brazil.
Brazil: 1,994 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 4.6 years longer than in Brazil.
Brazil: 8.4 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 13 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The United Arab Emirates welcomed 71 times as many tourists per resident as Brazil (2019).
Brazil: 0.03 (2024) · 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 84% in Brazil.
Brazil: 84% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
The United Arab Emirates and Brazil are practically level.
Brazil: 99.8% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
88% of people in Brazil live in cities, versus 86% in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 88% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 86% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The United Arab Emirates has 203 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Brazil 102.
Brazil: 102 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 203 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Brazil’s railway network is 107 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’.
Brazil: 29,850 km (2014) · United Arab Emirates: 279 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United Arab Emirates fly 18 times as many passengers per resident as those from Brazil.
Brazil: 0.45 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 7.91 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 59% of Brazil, but only 4.5% of the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 59% (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 4.5% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the United Arab Emirates emits 8.8 times as much CO₂ as someone in Brazil.
Brazil: 2.3 t (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 20.1 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
87% of Brazil’s electricity is renewable, versus 8.8% in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 86.6% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 8.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in the United Arab Emirates carries 3.6 times as much fine dust as in Brazil.
Brazil: 15.3 µg/m³ (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 55.7 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 28 times as likely to be murdered in Brazil as in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 19.3 per 100k (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 0.7 per 100k (2022)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Brazil are 2.7 times as deadly as in the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 15.7 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 3.5 °C warmer than Brazil.
Brazil: 25.3°C (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 28.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Brazil gets 35 times as much rain as the United Arab Emirates.
Brazil: 1,661 mm (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 47 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Brazil bigger than the United Arab Emirates?
Brazil is larger. The United Arab Emirates fits inside Brazil 86 times.
Which has more people, Brazil or the United Arab Emirates?
Brazil has 18 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Brazil or the United Arab Emirates?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 7 years longer than in Brazil. Life expectancy at birth is 76.0 years in Brazil and 83.1 in the United Arab Emirates.
Are people taller in Brazil or the United Arab Emirates?
Men in Brazil are 1.6 cm taller than in the United Arab Emirates (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
