Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Sudan fits inside China 5.1 times
China: 9,562,910 km² (2024) · Sudan: 1,878,000 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
China’s coastline is 17 times as long as Sudan’s
China: 14,500 km (2026 edition) · Sudan: 853 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
China’s highest peak towers 5,807 m above Sudan’s
China: 8,849 m (2026 edition) · Sudan: 3,042 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 60% of Sudan, versus 42% of China
China: 41.7% (2024) · Sudan: 60.3% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
China has 27 times as many people as Sudan
China: 1.41 billion (2025) · Sudan: 51.7 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
China is 5.4 times as densely populated as Sudan
China: 150 per km² (2025) · Sudan: 28 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in China are 3.6 cm taller than in Sudan
China: 175.7 cm (2019) · Sudan: 172.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in China are 3.1 cm taller than in Sudan
China: 163.5 cm (2019) · Sudan: 160.4 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in China is 21 years older than in Sudan
China: 39.1 years (2023) · Sudan: 18.3 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Sudan have 3.3 more children on average than in China
China: 1.01 children per woman (2024) · Sudan: 4.26 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
15% of people in China are 65 or older, versus 3.4% in Sudan
China: 14.9% (2025) · Sudan: 3.4% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Sudan hosts 95,863 times as many refugees per resident as China
China: 0.00016 per 1,000 (2025) · Sudan: 15.7 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
China has produced 0.1 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Sudan none
China: 0.1 (2026) · Sudan: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
Sudan has 2 official languages, China 1
China: 1 (2026) · Sudan: 2 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
China’s economy is 324 times the size of Sudan’s
China: $19.5 trillion (2025) · Sudan: $60.2 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
China produces 13 times as much per person as Sudan
China: Int$29,333 (2025) · Sudan: Int$2,192 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in China than in Sudan (Gini 1.8 points higher)
China: 36 (2022) · Sudan: 34.2 (2014)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
China: 0% (2022) · Sudan: no data
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 7.5% in Sudan, versus 4.6% in China
China: 4.6% (2025) · Sudan: 7.5% (2022)
How much goes to the military?
China spends 1.7% of its GDP on the military, Sudan 0.9%
China: 1.7% (2025) · Sudan: 0.9% (2021)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Sudan and China are practically level
China: 7% (2024) · Sudan: 7.4% (2016)
How expensive is it?
Sudan’s price level (US = 100) is 1.1× China’s
China: 47% (2025) · Sudan: 53% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
China spends 36 times as much on health per person as Sudan
China: $763 (2023) · Sudan: $21 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in China live 11 years longer than in Sudan
China: 78 years (2024) · Sudan: 66.5 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Sudan is 10 times as likely to die before turning one as in China
China: 4.1 per 1,000 (2024) · Sudan: 42.9 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
China has 12 times as many doctors per person as Sudan
China: 3.1 per 1,000 (2022) · Sudan: 0.3 per 1,000 (2017)
How many hospital beds are there?
China has 8.5 times as many hospital beds per person as Sudan
China: 5.6 per 1,000 (2023) · Sudan: 0.7 per 1,000 (2021)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in China is 2.2 times that in Sudan
China: 8 per 100k (2023) · Sudan: 3.7 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
16% of adults in Sudan are obese, versus 9.1% in China
China: 9.1% (2024) · Sudan: 16.1% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
China: 22.8% (2024) · Sudan: no data
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in China rate their lives 1.93 points higher than in Sudan
China: 6.07 (2025) · Sudan: 4.14 (2017)
How much do people drink?
Adults in China drink 2.6 times as much alcohol as in Sudan
China: 3.7 litres (2023) · Sudan: 1.4 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
China has 4 times as much meat per person as Sudan
China: 73.5 kg (2023) · Sudan: 18.4 kg (2022)
How much food is there per day?
China has 1,013 kcal more food per person per day than Sudan
China: 3,527 kcal (2023) · Sudan: 2,513 kcal (2022)
How long do people work?
Workers in Sudan put in 330 more hours a year than in China
China: 2,328 hours (2023) · Sudan: 2,658 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in China went to school 4.1 years longer than in Sudan
China: 8 years (2023) · Sudan: 4 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
China welcomed 2.5 times as many tourists per resident as Sudan (2019)
China: 0.05 (2019) · Sudan: 0.02 (2018)
How many World Heritage sites?
China has 58 more World Heritage sites than Sudan (61 against 3)
China: 61 (2026) · Sudan: 3 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
China has won 819 Olympic medals, Sudan 1
China: 819 (2026 edition) · Sudan: 1 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
92% of people in China are online, versus 19% in Sudan
China: 92% (2025) · Sudan: 19% (2017)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in China is 4.6 times as fast as in Sudan
China: 364 Mbps (2026) · Sudan: 79 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in China have electricity, versus 66% in Sudan
China: 100% (2024) · Sudan: 66% (2024)
How many live in cities?
66% of people in China live in cities, versus 35% in Sudan
China: 66% (2025) · Sudan: 35% (2025)
How many phones per person?
China has 132 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Sudan 70
China: 132 (2024) · Sudan: 70 (2022)
How much railway is there?
China’s railway network is 40 times as long as Sudan’s
China: 109,767 km (2021) · Sudan: 2,747 km (2020)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from China fly 25 times as many passengers per resident as those from Sudan
China: 0.44 (2023) · Sudan: 0.02 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 24% of China, but only 12% of Sudan
China: 24% (2024) · Sudan: 11.9% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in China emits 25 times as much CO₂ as someone in Sudan
China: 8.7 t (2024) · Sudan: 0.4 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
80% of Sudan’s electricity is renewable, versus 37% in China
China: 37% (2025) · Sudan: 79.7% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in China carries 9% more fine dust than in Sudan
China: 31.3 µg/m³ (2024) · Sudan: 28.8 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
China: 0.5 per 100k (2020) · Sudan: no data
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Sudan are 14% deadlier than in China
China: 24.7 per 100k (2023) · Sudan: 28.2 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Sudan is on average 19.9 °C warmer than China
China: 7.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · Sudan: 27.7°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
China gets 4.8 times as much rain as Sudan
China: 813 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Sudan: 171 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is China bigger than Sudan?
China is larger. Sudan fits inside China 5.1 times.
Which has more people, China or Sudan?
China has 27 times as many people as Sudan (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, China or Sudan?
People in China live 11 years longer than in Sudan. Life expectancy at birth is 78.0 years in China and 66.5 in Sudan.
Are people taller in China or Sudan?
Men in China are 3.6 cm taller than in Sudan (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
