The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The United Arab Emirates fits inside Ghana 2.4 times.
Ghana: 238,539 km² (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 98,648 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
The United Arab Emirates’ coastline is 2.4 times as long as Ghana’s.
Ghana: 539 km (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,318 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
The United Arab Emirates’ highest peak towers 1,020 m above Ghana’s.
Ghana: 885 m (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,905 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Ghana has 3 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 35.1 million (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 11.5 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The United Arab Emirates is 5% more densely populated than Ghana.
Ghana: 154 per km² (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 162 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the United Arab Emirates are 3.8 cm taller than in Ghana.
Ghana: 170.3 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 174.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the United Arab Emirates are 1.7 cm taller than in Ghana.
Ghana: 158.9 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 160.5 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the United Arab Emirates is 10 years older than in Ghana.
Ghana: 20.9 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 31.2 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Ghana have 2.1 more children on average than in the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 3.34 children per woman (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 1.21 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
3.8% of people in Ghana are 65 or older, versus 1.8% in the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 3.8% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 1.8% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Ghana has produced 0.3 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, the United Arab Emirates 0.0.
Ghana: 0.3 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Ghana and the United Arab Emirates are practically level.
Ghana: 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 4.8 times the size of Ghana’s.
Ghana: $114 billion (2025) · United Arab Emirates: $552 billion (2024)
How much is produced per person?
The United Arab Emirates produces 9.2 times as much per person as Ghana.
Ghana: Int$8,610 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: Int$79,344 (2024)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Ghana than in the United Arab Emirates (Gini 17.1 points higher).
Ghana: 43.5 (2016) · United Arab Emirates: 26.4 (2018)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 3.0% in Ghana, versus 2.2% in the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 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, Ghana 0.4%.
Ghana: 0.4% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2014)
How expensive is it?
The United Arab Emirates’ price level (US = 100) is 1.7× Ghana’s.
Ghana: 38% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 63% (2024)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United Arab Emirates spends 34 times as much on health per person as Ghana.
Ghana: $70 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: $2,402 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 17 years longer than in Ghana.
Ghana: 65.7 years (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 83.1 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Ghana is 7.2 times as likely to die before turning one as in the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 27.5 per 1,000 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 3.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The United Arab Emirates has 11 times as many doctors per person as Ghana.
Ghana: 0.3 per 1,000 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
30% of adults in the United Arab Emirates are obese, versus 14% in Ghana.
Ghana: 13.8% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 30.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
9.0% of adults in the United Arab Emirates smoke, versus 3.3% in Ghana.
Ghana: 3.3% (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 2.27 points higher than in Ghana.
Ghana: 4.55 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Ghana drink 4 times as much alcohol as in the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 2.6 litres (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 0.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The United Arab Emirates has 3.9 times as much meat per person as Ghana.
Ghana: 17.4 kg (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 67.8 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The United Arab Emirates and Ghana are practically level.
Ghana: 3,125 kcal (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3,125 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the United Arab Emirates put in 859 more hours a year than in Ghana.
Ghana: 1,656 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 5.9 years longer than in Ghana.
Ghana: 7.1 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 13 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The United Arab Emirates welcomed 83 times as many tourists per resident as Ghana (2019).
Ghana: 0.03 (2022) · United Arab Emirates: 2.28 (2019)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
100% of people in the United Arab Emirates are online, versus 72% in Ghana.
Ghana: 72% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in the United Arab Emirates have electricity, versus 92% in Ghana.
Ghana: 91.9% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
86% of people in the United Arab Emirates live in cities, versus 59% in Ghana.
Ghana: 59% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 86% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The United Arab Emirates has 203 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Ghana 114.
Ghana: 114 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 203 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Ghana’s railway network is 3.4 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’.
Ghana: 947 km (2022) · United Arab Emirates: 279 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United Arab Emirates fly 629 times as many passengers per resident as those from Ghana.
Ghana: 0.01 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 7.91 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 35% of Ghana, but only 4.5% of the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 35.2% (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 4.5% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the United Arab Emirates emits 33 times as much CO₂ as someone in Ghana.
Ghana: 0.6 t (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 20.1 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
36% of Ghana’s electricity is renewable, versus 8.8% in the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 36.2% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 8.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in the United Arab Emirates carries 2 times as much fine dust as in Ghana.
Ghana: 28.2 µg/m³ (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 55.7 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 2.6 times as likely to be murdered in Ghana as in the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 1.8 per 100k (2022) · United Arab Emirates: 0.7 per 100k (2022)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Ghana are 4.4 times as deadly as in the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 25.9 per 100k (2021) · United Arab Emirates: 5.9 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
The United Arab Emirates is on average 0.9 °C warmer than Ghana.
Ghana: 27.9°C (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 28.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Ghana gets 24 times as much rain as the United Arab Emirates.
Ghana: 1,118 mm (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 47 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Ghana bigger than the United Arab Emirates?
Ghana is larger. The United Arab Emirates fits inside Ghana 2.4 times.
Which has more people, Ghana or the United Arab Emirates?
Ghana has 3 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Ghana or the United Arab Emirates?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 17 years longer than in Ghana. Life expectancy at birth is 65.7 years in Ghana and 83.1 in the United Arab Emirates.
Are people taller in Ghana or the United Arab Emirates?
Men in the United Arab Emirates are 3.8 cm taller than in Ghana (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
