World median is the middle country on each statistic: half of all countries with data are above it, half below. It is not an average, so it is never pulled up or down by giants or microstates.
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The median country fits inside Ecuador 2.3 times.
Ecuador: 256,370 km² (2023) · World median: 111,370 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Ecuador’s coastline is 5.1 times as long as the median country’s.
Ecuador: 2,237 km (2026 edition) · World median: 440 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Ecuador’s highest peak towers 3,932 m above the median country’s.
Ecuador: 6,267 m (2026 edition) · World median: 2,335 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Ecuador has 2.5 times as many people as the median country.
Ecuador: 18.3 million (2025) · World median: 7.4 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The median country is 34% more densely populated than Ecuador.
Ecuador: 74 per km² (2025) · World median: 98 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the median country are 6.2 cm taller than in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 167.3 cm (2019) · World median: 173.5 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the median country are 5.3 cm taller than in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 155.3 cm (2019) · World median: 160.6 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the median country is 2.7 years older than in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 28.4 years (2023) · World median: 31.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in the median country have 0.1 more children on average than in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 1.81 children per woman (2024) · World median: 1.9 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
Ecuador and the median country are practically level.
Ecuador: 8.6% (2025) · World median: 8.6% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Ecuador and the median country are practically level.
Ecuador: 0 (2025) · World median: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Ecuador and the median country are practically level.
Ecuador: 1 (2026) · World median: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Ecuador’s economy is 2.9 times the size of the median country’s.
Ecuador: $130 billion (2025) · World median: $45.5 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
The median country produces 26% more per person than Ecuador.
Ecuador: Int$16,757 (2025) · World median: Int$21,072 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Ecuador than in the median country (Gini 11.5 points higher).
Ecuador: 45.9 (2025) · World median: 34.4 (2023)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 5.1% in the median country, versus 3.3% in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 3.3% (2025) · World median: 5.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Ecuador spends 2.2% of its GDP on the military, the median country 1.7%.
Ecuador: 2.2% (2024) · World median: 1.7% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The median country’s price level (US = 100) is 1.1× Ecuador’s.
Ecuador: 43% (2025) · World median: 45% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Ecuador spends 8% more on health per person than the median country.
Ecuador: $509 (2023) · World median: $470 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Ecuador live 3 years longer than in the median country.
Ecuador: 77.6 years (2024) · World median: 74.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in the median country is 16% more likely to die before turning one than in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 10.9 per 1,000 (2024) · World median: 12.7 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Ecuador has 38% more doctors per person than the median country.
Ecuador: 2.3 per 1,000 (2020) · World median: 1.7 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is obesity?
29% of adults in Ecuador are obese, versus 24% in the median country.
Ecuador: 28.7% (2024) · World median: 24% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
19% of adults in the median country smoke, versus 10% in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 10.1% (2024) · World median: 19% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Ecuador rate their lives 0.31 points higher than in the median country.
Ecuador: 6.14 (2025) · World median: 5.83 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in the median country drink 35% more alcohol than in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 3.2 litres (2023) · World median: 4.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Ecuador and the median country are nearly identical here.
Ecuador: 56.2 kg (2023) · World median: 56.2 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The median country has 317 kcal more food per person per day than Ecuador.
Ecuador: 2,621 kcal (2023) · World median: 2,938 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the median country put in 381 more hours a year than in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 1,594 hours (2023) · World median: 1,974 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the median country went to school 0.96 year longer than in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 9 years (2023) · World median: 9.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Ecuador: no data · World median: 0.34 (2024)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
82% of people in the median country are online, versus 77% in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 77% (2024) · World median: 82% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in the median country have electricity, versus 99% in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 98.5% (2024) · World median: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
64% of people in the median country live in cities, versus 63% in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 63% (2025) · World median: 64% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The median country has 115 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Ecuador 102.
Ecuador: 102 (2024) · World median: 115 (2024)
How much railway is there?
The median country’s railway network is 2.2 times as long as Ecuador’s.
Ecuador: 965 km (2022) · World median: 2,141 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Ecuador fly 5% more passengers per resident than those from the median country.
Ecuador: 0.25 (2023) · World median: 0.24 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 50% of Ecuador, but only 31% of the median country.
Ecuador: 49.5% (2023) · World median: 31.2% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the median country emits 18% more CO₂ than someone in Ecuador.
Ecuador: 2.5 t (2024) · World median: 3 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
79% of Ecuador’s electricity is renewable, versus 31% in the median country.
Ecuador: 79.4% (2025) · World median: 30.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in Ecuador carries 7% more fine dust than in the median country.
Ecuador: 17.7 µg/m³ (2024) · World median: 16.6 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 20 times as likely to be murdered in Ecuador as in the median country.
Ecuador: 45.7 per 100k (2023) · World median: 2.3 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Ecuador are 90% deadlier than in the median country.
Ecuador: 23.4 per 100k (2021) · World median: 12.3 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
The median country is on average 1.7 °C warmer than Ecuador.
Ecuador: 21.3°C (2016–2025 avg) · World median: 23°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Ecuador gets 3.2 times as much rain as the median country.
Ecuador: 3,204 mm (2016–2025 avg) · World median: 1,014 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Ecuador bigger than the median country?
Ecuador is larger. The median country fits inside Ecuador 2.3 times.
Which has more people, Ecuador or the median country?
Ecuador has 2.5 times as many people as the median country (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Ecuador or the median country?
People in Ecuador live 3 years longer than in the median country. Life expectancy at birth is 77.6 years in Ecuador and 74.6 in the median country.
Are people taller in Ecuador or the median country?
Men in the median country are 6.2 cm taller than in Ecuador (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
