Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Eritrea fits inside Ethiopia 9.3 times
Eritrea: 121,630 km² (2024) · Ethiopia: 1,129,820 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Eritrea: 2,234 km (2026 edition) · Ethiopia: 0 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Ethiopia’s highest peak towers 1,532 m above Eritrea’s
Eritrea: 3,018 m (2026 edition) · Ethiopia: 4,550 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 63% of Eritrea, versus 34% of Ethiopia
Eritrea: 62.8% (2024) · Ethiopia: 34.3% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Ethiopia has 38 times as many people as Eritrea
Eritrea: 3.61 million (2025) · Ethiopia: 135 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Ethiopia is 4 times as densely populated as Eritrea
Eritrea: 30 per km² (2025) · Ethiopia: 121 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Eritrea are 1.8 cm taller than in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 170.6 cm (2019) · Ethiopia: 168.8 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Eritrea and Ethiopia are practically level
Eritrea: 157.6 cm (2019) · Ethiopia: 157.2 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
Ethiopia and Eritrea are practically level
Eritrea: 18.7 years (2023) · Ethiopia: 18.7 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Ethiopia have 0.2 more children on average than in Eritrea
Eritrea: 3.68 children per woman (2024) · Ethiopia: 3.91 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
4.3% of people in Eritrea are 65 or older, versus 3.3% in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 4.3% (2025) · Ethiopia: 3.3% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Ethiopia hosts 226 times as many refugees per resident as Eritrea
Eritrea: 0.033 per 1,000 (2025) · Ethiopia: 7.5 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Ethiopia has produced 0.1 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Eritrea none
Eritrea: 0 (2026) · Ethiopia: 0.1 (2026)
How many official languages?
Eritrea has 3 official languages, Ethiopia 1
Eritrea: 3 (2026) · Ethiopia: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: $126 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: Int$3,622 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 31.1 (2021)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 38.6% (2021)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 6.0% in Eritrea, versus 3.3% in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 6% (2025) · Ethiopia: 3.3% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 0.5% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 3.4% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 26% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Ethiopia spends 23% more on health per person than Eritrea
Eritrea: $28 (2023) · Ethiopia: $35 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Eritrea live 1.3 years longer than in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 68.9 years (2024) · Ethiopia: 67.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Ethiopia is 40% more likely to die before turning one than in Eritrea
Eritrea: 24.7 per 1,000 (2024) · Ethiopia: 34.5 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Ethiopia has 63% more doctors per person than Eritrea
Eritrea: 0.1 per 1,000 (2022) · Ethiopia: 0.1 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
Eritrea has 3.1 times as many hospital beds per person as Ethiopia
Eritrea: 1 per 1,000 (2023) · Ethiopia: 0.3 per 1,000 (2016)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Eritrea is 79% higher than in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 25.8 per 100k (2023) · Ethiopia: 14.4 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
3.7% of adults in Eritrea are obese, versus 2.5% in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 3.7% (2024) · Ethiopia: 2.5% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 5.2% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 3.99 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Ethiopia drink 64% more alcohol than in Eritrea
Eritrea: 1.4 litres (2023) · Ethiopia: 2.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 6.9 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 2,558 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 1,599 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Eritrea went to school 2.7 years longer than in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 5.1 years (2023) · Ethiopia: 2.4 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 0.0041 (2024)
How many World Heritage sites?
Ethiopia has 11 more World Heritage sites than Eritrea (12 against 1)
Eritrea: 1 (2026) · Ethiopia: 12 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Ethiopia has won 62 Olympic medals, Eritrea 1
Eritrea: 1 (2026 edition) · Ethiopia: 62 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
22% of people in Ethiopia are online, versus 14% in Eritrea
Eritrea: 14% (2020) · Ethiopia: 22% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Eritrea: no data · Ethiopia: 22 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
57% of people in Ethiopia have electricity, versus 55% in Eritrea
Eritrea: 55.3% (2024) · Ethiopia: 56.6% (2024)
How many live in cities?
35% of people in Eritrea live in cities, versus 24% in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 35% (2025) · Ethiopia: 24% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Ethiopia has 65 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Eritrea 59
Eritrea: 59 (2022) · Ethiopia: 65 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Ethiopia’s railway network is 2.5 times as long as Eritrea’s
Eritrea: 306 km (2018) · Ethiopia: 754 km (2018)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Ethiopia fly 9 times as many passengers per resident as those from Eritrea
Eritrea: 0.01 (2020) · Ethiopia: 0.11 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 24% of Ethiopia, but only 12% of Eritrea
Eritrea: 12% (2024) · Ethiopia: 23.8% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Eritrea emits 56% more CO₂ than someone in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 0.2 t (2024) · Ethiopia: 0.1 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
100% of Ethiopia’s electricity is renewable, versus 11% in Eritrea
Eritrea: 11.1% (2024) · Ethiopia: 100% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Eritrea carries 24% more fine dust than in Ethiopia
Eritrea: 25 µg/m³ (2024) · Ethiopia: 20.2 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Ethiopia are 10% deadlier than in Eritrea
Eritrea: 21.8 per 100k (2023) · Ethiopia: 23.9 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Eritrea is on average 3.5 °C warmer than Ethiopia
Eritrea: 27.4°C (2016–2025 avg) · Ethiopia: 23.9°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Ethiopia gets 3.1 times as much rain as Eritrea
Eritrea: 307 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Ethiopia: 962 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is Eritrea bigger than Ethiopia?
Ethiopia is larger. Eritrea fits inside Ethiopia 9.3 times.
Which has more people, Eritrea or Ethiopia?
Ethiopia has 38 times as many people as Eritrea (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Eritrea or Ethiopia?
People in Eritrea live 1.3 years longer than in Ethiopia. Life expectancy at birth is 68.9 years in Eritrea and 67.6 in Ethiopia.
Are people taller in Eritrea or Ethiopia?
Men in Eritrea are 1.8 cm taller than in Ethiopia (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
