Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The DR Congo is 9% bigger than Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 2,344,860 km² (2023) · Saudi Arabia: 2,149,690 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Saudi Arabia’s coastline is 71 times as long as the DR Congo’s.
DR Congo: 37 km (2026 edition) · Saudi Arabia: 2,640 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
The DR Congo’s highest peak towers 2,110 m above Saudi Arabia’s.
DR Congo: 5,110 m (2026 edition) · Saudi Arabia: 3,000 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
The DR Congo has 3.1 times as many people as Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 113 million (2025) · Saudi Arabia: 37 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The DR Congo is 2.9 times as densely populated as Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 50 per km² (2025) · Saudi Arabia: 17 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Saudi Arabia are 2.1 cm taller than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 168.6 cm (2019) · Saudi Arabia: 170.7 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Saudi Arabia are 2.5 cm taller than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 156.3 cm (2019) · Saudi Arabia: 158.8 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Saudi Arabia is 13 years older than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 15.8 years (2023) · Saudi Arabia: 29.2 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in the DR Congo have 3.7 more children on average than in Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 5.98 children per woman (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 2.31 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
The DR Congo and Saudi Arabia are practically level.
DR Congo: 3.1% (2025) · Saudi Arabia: 3.1% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
The DR Congo has produced 0.1 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Saudi Arabia 0.0.
DR Congo: 0.1 (2025) · Saudi Arabia: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
The DR Congo has 5 official languages, Saudi Arabia 1.
DR Congo: 5 (2026) · Saudi Arabia: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Saudi Arabia’s economy is 14 times the size of the DR Congo’s.
DR Congo: $91 billion (2025) · Saudi Arabia: $1.28 trillion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Saudi Arabia produces 38 times as much per person as the DR Congo.
DR Congo: Int$1,920 (2025) · Saudi Arabia: Int$73,784 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
DR Congo: 44.7 (2020) · Saudi Arabia: no data
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 4.4% in the DR Congo, versus 3.0% in Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 4.4% (2025) · Saudi Arabia: 3% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Saudi Arabia spends 7.3% of its GDP on the military, the DR Congo 1.2%.
DR Congo: 1.2% (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 7.3% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Saudi Arabia’s price level (US = 100) is 1.1× the DR Congo’s.
DR Congo: 42% (2025) · Saudi Arabia: 47% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Saudi Arabia spends 78 times as much on health per person as the DR Congo.
DR Congo: $23 (2023) · Saudi Arabia: $1,825 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Saudi Arabia live 17 years longer than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 62.1 years (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 79 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in the DR Congo is 12 times as likely to die before turning one as in Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 56.4 per 1,000 (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 4.7 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Saudi Arabia has 16 times as many doctors per person as the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 0.2 per 1,000 (2022) · Saudi Arabia: 3.4 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
39% of adults in Saudi Arabia are obese, versus 5.9% in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 5.9% (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 39.2% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
15% of adults in Saudi Arabia smoke, versus 12% in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 12.3% (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 14.7% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Saudi Arabia rate their lives 3.06 points higher than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 3.76 (2025) · Saudi Arabia: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
DR Congo: 1.6 litres (2023) · Saudi Arabia: no data
How much meat is on the menu?
Saudi Arabia has 17 times as much meat per person as the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 3.5 kg (2023) · Saudi Arabia: 58.1 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Saudi Arabia has 1,645 kcal more food per person per day than the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 2,015 kcal (2023) · Saudi Arabia: 3,660 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in Saudi Arabia put in 284 more hours a year than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 1,841 hours (2023) · Saudi Arabia: 2,125 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Saudi Arabia went to school 4.2 years longer than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 7.4 years (2023) · Saudi Arabia: 11.6 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Saudi Arabia welcomed 163 times as many tourists per resident as the DR Congo (2019).
DR Congo: 0.01 (2019) · Saudi Arabia: 0.84 (2024)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
100% of people in Saudi Arabia are online, versus 20% in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 20% (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in Saudi Arabia have electricity, versus 23% in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 22.5% (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
85% of people in Saudi Arabia live in cities, versus 45% in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 45% (2025) · Saudi Arabia: 85% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Saudi Arabia has 160 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, the DR Congo 59.
DR Congo: 59 (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 160 (2024)
How much railway is there?
The DR Congo’s railway network is 24% longer than Saudi Arabia’s.
DR Congo: 3,641 km (2021) · Saudi Arabia: 2,939 km (2018)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Saudi Arabia fly 127 times as many passengers per resident as those from the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 0.01 (2023) · Saudi Arabia: 1.3 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 54% of the DR Congo, but only 0.5% of Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 54.2% (2023) · Saudi Arabia: 0.5% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Saudi Arabia emits 377 times as much CO₂ as someone in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 0.1 t (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 20.4 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
100% of the DR Congo’s electricity is renewable, versus 2.2% in Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 100% (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 2.2% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in Saudi Arabia carries 22% more fine dust than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 41.2 µg/m³ (2024) · Saudi Arabia: 50.4 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
DR Congo: no data · Saudi Arabia: 0.9 per 100k (2019)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Saudi Arabia are 13% deadlier than in the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 16.3 per 100k (2021) · Saudi Arabia: 18.5 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Saudi Arabia is on average 2.0 °C warmer than the DR Congo.
DR Congo: 24.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · Saudi Arabia: 26.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
The DR Congo gets 24 times as much rain as Saudi Arabia.
DR Congo: 1,469 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Saudi Arabia: 61 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is the DR Congo bigger than Saudi Arabia?
The DR Congo is larger. The DR Congo is 9% bigger than Saudi Arabia.
Which has more people, the DR Congo or Saudi Arabia?
The DR Congo has 3.1 times as many people as Saudi Arabia (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, the DR Congo or Saudi Arabia?
People in Saudi Arabia live 17 years longer than in the DR Congo. Life expectancy at birth is 62.1 years in the DR Congo and 79.0 in Saudi Arabia.
Are people taller in the DR Congo or Saudi Arabia?
Men in Saudi Arabia are 2.1 cm taller than in the DR Congo (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).