The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The United Arab Emirates fits inside Ethiopia 11 times
Ethiopia: 1,129,820 km² (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 98,648 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Ethiopia: 0 km (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,318 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Ethiopia’s highest peak towers 2,645 m above the United Arab Emirates’
Ethiopia: 4,550 m (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,905 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 34% of Ethiopia, versus 5.6% of the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 34.3% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Ethiopia has 12 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 135 million (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 11.5 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The United Arab Emirates is 34% more densely populated than Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 121 per km² (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 162 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the United Arab Emirates are 5.2 cm taller than in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 168.8 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 174.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the United Arab Emirates are 3.4 cm taller than in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 157.2 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 160.5 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the United Arab Emirates is 12 years older than in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 18.7 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 31.2 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Ethiopia have 2.7 more children on average than in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 3.91 children per woman (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 1.21 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
3.3% of people in Ethiopia are 65 or older, versus 1.8% in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 3.3% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 1.8% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Ethiopia hosts 62 times as many refugees per resident as the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 7.5 per 1,000 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 0.1 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Ethiopia has produced 0.1 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, the United Arab Emirates none
Ethiopia: 0.1 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates are practically level
Ethiopia: 1 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The United Arab Emirates’ economy is 4.4 times the size of Ethiopia’s
Ethiopia: $126 billion (2025) · United Arab Emirates: $552 billion (2024)
How much is produced per person?
The United Arab Emirates produces 22 times as much per person as Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Int$3,622 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: Int$79,344 (2024)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Ethiopia than in the United Arab Emirates (Gini 4.7 points higher)
Ethiopia: 31.1 (2021) · United Arab Emirates: 26.4 (2018)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
39% of people in Ethiopia live on less than $3 a day, versus 0% in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 38.6% (2021) · United Arab Emirates: 0% (2018)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 3.3% in Ethiopia, versus 2.2% in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 3.3% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 2.2% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
The United Arab Emirates spends 5.6% of its GDP on the military, Ethiopia 0.5%
Ethiopia: 0.5% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2014)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Ethiopia’s central government collects 3.4% of GDP in tax, the United Arab Emirates’ 0.6%
Ethiopia: 3.4% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 0.6% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The United Arab Emirates’ price level (US = 100) is 2.5× Ethiopia’s
Ethiopia: 26% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 63% (2024)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United Arab Emirates spends 69 times as much on health per person as Ethiopia
Ethiopia: $35 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: $2,402 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 15 years longer than in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 67.6 years (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 83.1 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Ethiopia is 9.1 times as likely to die before turning one as in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 34.5 per 1,000 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 3.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The United Arab Emirates has 21 times as many doctors per person as Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 0.1 per 1,000 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
The United Arab Emirates has 5.7 times as many hospital beds per person as Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 0.3 per 1,000 (2016) · United Arab Emirates: 1.9 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Ethiopia is 5.1 times that in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 14.4 per 100k (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 2.8 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
30% of adults in the United Arab Emirates are obese, versus 2.5% in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 2.5% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 30.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
9.0% of adults in the United Arab Emirates smoke, versus 5.2% in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 5.2% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 9% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in the United Arab Emirates rate their lives 2.84 points higher than in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 3.99 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Ethiopia drink 3.5 times as much alcohol as in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 2.3 litres (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 0.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The United Arab Emirates has 9.8 times as much meat per person as Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 6.9 kg (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 67.8 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The United Arab Emirates has 567 kcal more food per person per day than Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 2,558 kcal (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3,125 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the United Arab Emirates put in 915 more hours a year than in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 1,599 hours (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 2,514 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the United Arab Emirates went to school 11 years longer than in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 2.4 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 13 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The United Arab Emirates welcomed 562 times as many tourists per resident as Ethiopia (2019)
Ethiopia: 0.0041 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 2.28 (2019)
How many World Heritage sites?
Ethiopia has 9 more World Heritage sites than the United Arab Emirates (12 against 3)
Ethiopia: 12 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 3 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Ethiopia has won 62 Olympic medals, the United Arab Emirates 2
Ethiopia: 62 (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 2 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
100% of people in the United Arab Emirates are online, versus 22% in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 22% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in the United Arab Emirates is 17 times as fast as in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 22 Mbps (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 358 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in the United Arab Emirates have electricity, versus 57% in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 56.6% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
86% of people in the United Arab Emirates live in cities, versus 24% in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 24% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 86% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The United Arab Emirates has 203 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Ethiopia 65
Ethiopia: 65 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 203 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Ethiopia’s railway network is 2.7 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’
Ethiopia: 754 km (2018) · United Arab Emirates: 279 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United Arab Emirates fly 70 times as many passengers per resident as those from Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 0.11 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 7.91 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 24% of Ethiopia, but only 4.6% of the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 23.8% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 4.6% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the United Arab Emirates emits 149 times as much CO₂ as someone in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 0.1 t (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 20.1 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
100% of Ethiopia’s electricity is renewable, versus 8.8% in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 100% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 8.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in the United Arab Emirates carries 2.8 times as much fine dust as in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 20.2 µg/m³ (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 55.7 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
Ethiopia: no data · United Arab Emirates: 0.7 per 100k (2022)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Ethiopia are 3.5 times as deadly as in the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 23.9 per 100k (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 6.9 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
The United Arab Emirates is on average 4.9 °C warmer than Ethiopia
Ethiopia: 23.9°C (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 28.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Ethiopia gets 20 times as much rain as the United Arab Emirates
Ethiopia: 962 mm (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 47 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is Ethiopia bigger than the United Arab Emirates?
Ethiopia is larger. The United Arab Emirates fits inside Ethiopia 11 times.
Which has more people, Ethiopia or the United Arab Emirates?
Ethiopia has 12 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Ethiopia or the United Arab Emirates?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 15 years longer than in Ethiopia. Life expectancy at birth is 67.6 years in Ethiopia and 83.1 in the United Arab Emirates.
Are people taller in Ethiopia or the United Arab Emirates?
Men in the United Arab Emirates are 5.2 cm taller than in Ethiopia (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
