The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
São Tomé and Príncipe fits inside Cameroon 495 times.
Cameroon: 475,440 km² (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 960 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Cameroon’s coastline is 92% longer than São Tomé and Príncipe’s.
Cameroon: 402 km (2026 edition) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 209 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Cameroon’s highest peak towers 2,021 m above São Tomé and Príncipe’s.
Cameroon: 4,045 m (2026 edition) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 2,024 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Cameroon has 124 times as many people as São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 29.9 million (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 240,254 (2025)
How crowded is it?
São Tomé and Príncipe is 4 times as densely populated as Cameroon.
Cameroon: 63 per km² (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 250 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Cameroon are 1.8 cm taller than in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 172.1 cm (2019) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 170.4 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Cameroon and São Tomé and Príncipe are practically level.
Cameroon: 160.4 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 Cameroon.
Cameroon: 17.8 years (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 19.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Cameroon have 0.7 more children on average than in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 4.26 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 2.8% in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 2.8% (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 3.9% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Cameroon: 0 (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How many official languages?
Cameroon has 2 official languages, São Tomé and Príncipe 1.
Cameroon: 2 (2026) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Cameroon’s economy is 60 times the size of São Tomé and Príncipe’s.
Cameroon: $58.9 billion (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: $981 million (2025)
How much is produced per person?
São Tomé and Príncipe produces 10% more per person than Cameroon.
Cameroon: Int$5,788 (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: Int$6,388 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Cameroon than in São Tomé and Príncipe (Gini 1.5 points higher).
Cameroon: 42.2 (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 3.6% in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 3.6% (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 9.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Cameroon: 1% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How expensive is it?
São Tomé and Príncipe’s price level (US = 100) is 1.9× Cameroon’s.
Cameroon: 34% (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 64% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
São Tomé and Príncipe spends 2.2 times as much on health per person as Cameroon.
Cameroon: $79 (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: $171 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in São Tomé and Príncipe live 5.9 years longer than in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 64 years (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 69.9 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Cameroon is 4.4 times as likely to die before turning one as in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 40.2 per 1,000 (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 9.2 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
São Tomé and Príncipe has 3.4 times as many doctors per person as Cameroon.
Cameroon: 0.1 per 1,000 (2022) · 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 15% in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 14.6% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 16.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
8.3% of adults in São Tomé and Príncipe smoke, versus 5.7% in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 5.7% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 8.3% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
Cameroon: 5.08 (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How much do people drink?
Adults in Cameroon drink 3 times as much alcohol as in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 12.9 litres (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 4.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
São Tomé and Príncipe has 71% more meat per person than Cameroon.
Cameroon: 14.8 kg (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 25.2 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Cameroon has 622 kcal more food per person per day than São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 2,901 kcal (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 2,279 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Cameroon: 2,181 hours (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Cameroon went to school 0.59 years longer than in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 6.6 years (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 6 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Cameroon: no data · 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 46% in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 46% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 59% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
78% of people in São Tomé and Príncipe have electricity, versus 72% in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 72% (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 56% in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 56% (2025) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 69% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Cameroon has 108 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, São Tomé and Príncipe 62.
Cameroon: 108 (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 62 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Cameroon: 884 km (2021) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How much do they fly?
Airlines from São Tomé and Príncipe fly 15 times as many passengers per resident as those from Cameroon.
Cameroon: 0.01 (2023) · 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 43% of Cameroon.
Cameroon: 42.7% (2023) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 52.1% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in São Tomé and Príncipe emits 82% more CO₂ than someone in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 0.3 t (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 0.6 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
73% of Cameroon’s electricity is renewable, versus 11% in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 73.1% (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 11.1% (2023)
How clean is the air?
The air in Cameroon carries 3.3 times as much fine dust as in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 51.5 µg/m³ (2024) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 15.6 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
Cameroon: 6.8 per 100k (2022) · São Tomé and Príncipe: no data
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in São Tomé and Príncipe are 10% deadlier than in Cameroon.
Cameroon: 10.6 per 100k (2021) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 11.7 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
São Tomé and Príncipe is on average 0.9 °C warmer than Cameroon.
Cameroon: 25.1°C (2016–2025 avg) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 26°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Cameroon gets 12% more rain than São Tomé and Príncipe.
Cameroon: 1,665 mm (2016–2025 avg) · São Tomé and Príncipe: 1,487 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Cameroon bigger than São Tomé and Príncipe?
Cameroon is larger. São Tomé and Príncipe fits inside Cameroon 495 times.
Which has more people, Cameroon or São Tomé and Príncipe?
Cameroon has 124 times as many people as São Tomé and Príncipe (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Cameroon or São Tomé and Príncipe?
People in São Tomé and Príncipe live 5.9 years longer than in Cameroon. Life expectancy at birth is 64.0 years in Cameroon and 69.9 in São Tomé and Príncipe.
Are people taller in Cameroon or São Tomé and Príncipe?
Men in Cameroon are 1.8 cm taller than in São Tomé and Príncipe (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
