Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Mali is 20% bigger than Mauritania.
Mali: 1,240,190 km² (2023) · Mauritania: 1,030,700 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Mali: 0 km (2026 edition) · Mauritania: 754 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Mali’s highest peak towers 240 m above Mauritania’s.
Mali: 1,155 m (2026 edition) · Mauritania: 915 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Mali has 4.7 times as many people as Mauritania.
Mali: 25.2 million (2025) · Mauritania: 5.32 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Mali is 4 times as densely populated as Mauritania.
Mali: 21 per km² (2025) · Mauritania: 5 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Mali are 9.5 cm taller than in Mauritania.
Mali: 175 cm (2019) · Mauritania: 165.5 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Mali are 1.9 cm taller than in Mauritania.
Mali: 162 cm (2019) · Mauritania: 160.1 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Mauritania is 1.7 years older than in Mali.
Mali: 15.5 years (2023) · Mauritania: 17.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Mali have 0.9 more children on average than in Mauritania.
Mali: 5.51 children per woman (2024) · Mauritania: 4.63 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
3.2% of people in Mauritania are 65 or older, versus 2.4% in Mali.
Mali: 2.4% (2025) · Mauritania: 3.2% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Mali and Mauritania are practically level.
Mali: 0 (2025) · Mauritania: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Mali and Mauritania are practically level.
Mali: 1 (2026) · Mauritania: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Mali’s economy is 2.6 times the size of Mauritania’s.
Mali: $30.1 billion (2025) · Mauritania: $11.7 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Mauritania produces 2.2 times as much per person as Mali.
Mali: Int$3,503 (2025) · Mauritania: Int$7,676 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Mali than in Mauritania (Gini 3.7 points higher).
Mali: 35.7 (2021) · Mauritania: 32 (2019)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 10% in Mauritania, versus 2.8% in Mali.
Mali: 2.8% (2025) · Mauritania: 10.3% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Mali spends 4.2% of its GDP on the military, Mauritania 2.2%.
Mali: 4.2% (2024) · Mauritania: 2.2% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Mali’s price level (US = 100) is 1.2× Mauritania’s.
Mali: 34% (2025) · Mauritania: 29% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Mauritania spends 2.7 times as much on health per person as Mali.
Mali: $34 (2023) · Mauritania: $92 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Mauritania live 8 years longer than in Mali.
Mali: 60.7 years (2024) · Mauritania: 68.7 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Mali is 57% more likely to die before turning one than in Mauritania.
Mali: 47.5 per 1,000 (2024) · Mauritania: 30.2 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Mauritania has 39% more doctors per person than Mali.
Mali: 0.2 per 1,000 (2023) · Mauritania: 0.3 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is obesity?
22% of adults in Mauritania are obese, versus 12% in Mali.
Mali: 11.6% (2024) · Mauritania: 22.1% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
9.9% of adults in Mauritania smoke, versus 7.4% in Mali.
Mali: 7.4% (2024) · Mauritania: 9.9% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Mali rate their lives 0.12 points higher than in Mauritania.
Mali: 4.59 (2025) · Mauritania: 4.47 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Mali drink 1,204 times as much alcohol as in Mauritania.
Mali: 2 litres (2023) · Mauritania: 0.0017 litres (2019)
How much meat is on the menu?
Mauritania has 4.9 times as much meat per person as Mali.
Mali: 7.5 kg (2022) · Mauritania: 36.5 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Mauritania has 175 kcal more food per person per day than Mali.
Mali: 2,734 kcal (2022) · Mauritania: 2,909 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Mali: 2,243 hours (2023) · Mauritania: no data
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Mauritania went to school 3.2 years longer than in Mali.
Mali: 1.6 years (2023) · Mauritania: 4.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Mali: 0.01 (2019) · Mauritania: no data
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
46% of people in Mauritania are online, versus 37% in Mali.
Mali: 37% (2024) · Mauritania: 46% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
52% of people in Mauritania have electricity, versus 50% in Mali.
Mali: 49.5% (2024) · Mauritania: 52.2% (2024)
How many live in cities?
61% of people in Mauritania live in cities, versus 32% in Mali.
Mali: 32% (2025) · Mauritania: 61% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Mali has 112 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Mauritania 92.
Mali: 112 (2022) · Mauritania: 92 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Mauritania’s railway network is 23% longer than Mali’s.
Mali: 593 km (2014) · Mauritania: 728 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Mali: no data · Mauritania: 0.06 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 11% of Mali, but only 0.3% of Mauritania.
Mali: 10.9% (2023) · Mauritania: 0.3% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Mauritania emits 3.6 times as much CO₂ as someone in Mali.
Mali: 0.3 t (2024) · Mauritania: 1 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
23% of Mauritania’s electricity is renewable, versus 19% in Mali.
Mali: 19.5% (2024) · Mauritania: 22.7% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in Mauritania carries 14% more fine dust than in Mali.
Mali: 31 µg/m³ (2024) · Mauritania: 35.2 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
Mali: no data · Mauritania: 1 per 100k (2020)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Mali are 2.1 times as deadly as in Mauritania.
Mali: 20.2 per 100k (2021) · Mauritania: 9.5 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Mali is on average 1.2 °C warmer than Mauritania.
Mali: 29.3°C (2016–2025 avg) · Mauritania: 28.1°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Mali gets 4.3 times as much rain as Mauritania.
Mali: 249 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Mauritania: 57 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Mali bigger than Mauritania?
Mali is larger. Mali is 20% bigger than Mauritania.
Which has more people, Mali or Mauritania?
Mali has 4.7 times as many people as Mauritania (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Mali or Mauritania?
People in Mauritania live 8 years longer than in Mali. Life expectancy at birth is 60.7 years in Mali and 68.7 in Mauritania.
Are people taller in Mali or Mauritania?
Men in Mali are 9.5 cm taller than in Mauritania (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
