Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Senegal fits inside Mauritania 5.2 times
Mauritania: 1,030,700 km² (2024) · Senegal: 196,710 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Mauritania’s coastline is 42% longer than Senegal’s
Mauritania: 754 km (2026 edition) · Senegal: 531 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Mauritania’s highest peak towers 267 m above Senegal’s
Mauritania: 915 m (2026 edition) · Senegal: 648 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 49% of Senegal, versus 39% of Mauritania
Mauritania: 38.5% (2024) · Senegal: 49.4% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Senegal has 3.6 times as many people as Mauritania
Mauritania: 5.32 million (2025) · Senegal: 18.9 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Senegal is 19 times as densely populated as Mauritania
Mauritania: 5 per km² (2025) · Senegal: 98 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Senegal are 10.6 cm taller than in Mauritania
Mauritania: 165.5 cm (2019) · Senegal: 176.2 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Senegal are 3.9 cm taller than in Mauritania
Mauritania: 160.1 cm (2019) · Senegal: 163.9 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Senegal is 2 years older than in Mauritania
Mauritania: 17.1 years (2023) · Senegal: 19.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Mauritania have 0.9 more children on average than in Senegal
Mauritania: 4.63 children per woman (2024) · Senegal: 3.77 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
Senegal and Mauritania are practically level
Mauritania: 3.2% (2025) · Senegal: 3.6% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Mauritania hosts 62 times as many refugees per resident as Senegal
Mauritania: 56.7 per 1,000 (2025) · Senegal: 0.9 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Mauritania and Senegal are practically level
Mauritania: 0 (2026) · Senegal: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
Mauritania and Senegal are practically level
Mauritania: 1 (2026) · Senegal: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Senegal’s economy is 3.2 times the size of Mauritania’s
Mauritania: $11.7 billion (2025) · Senegal: $37 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Mauritania produces 40% more per person than Senegal
Mauritania: Int$7,676 (2025) · Senegal: Int$5,463 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Senegal than in Mauritania (Gini 4.2 points higher)
Mauritania: 32 (2019) · Senegal: 36.2 (2021)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
18% of people in Senegal live on less than $3 a day, versus 10% in Mauritania
Mauritania: 10.2% (2019) · Senegal: 17.9% (2021)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 10% in Mauritania, versus 2.7% in Senegal
Mauritania: 10.3% (2025) · Senegal: 2.7% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Mauritania spends 2.7% of its GDP on the military, Senegal 1.6%
Mauritania: 2.7% (2025) · Senegal: 1.6% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Mauritania: no data · Senegal: 19.5% (2023)
How expensive is it?
Senegal’s price level (US = 100) is 1.2× Mauritania’s
Mauritania: 29% (2025) · Senegal: 36% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Mauritania spends 26% more on health per person than Senegal
Mauritania: $92 (2023) · Senegal: $73 (2023)
How long do people live?
Senegal and Mauritania are practically level
Mauritania: 68.7 years (2024) · Senegal: 68.9 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Mauritania is 4% more likely to die before turning one than in Senegal
Mauritania: 30.2 per 1,000 (2024) · Senegal: 28.9 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Mauritania has 2.4 times as many doctors per person as Senegal
Mauritania: 0.3 per 1,000 (2022) · Senegal: 0.1 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
Mauritania: no data · Senegal: 0.7 per 1,000 (2019)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Senegal is 65% higher than in Mauritania
Mauritania: 9.6 per 100k (2023) · Senegal: 15.8 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
22% of adults in Mauritania are obese, versus 10% in Senegal
Mauritania: 22.1% (2024) · Senegal: 10.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
9.9% of adults in Mauritania smoke, versus 5.4% in Senegal
Mauritania: 9.9% (2024) · Senegal: 5.4% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Senegal rate their lives 0.31 points higher than in Mauritania
Mauritania: 4.47 (2025) · Senegal: 4.79 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Senegal drink 198 times as much alcohol as in Mauritania
Mauritania: 0.0017 litres (2019) · Senegal: 0.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Mauritania has 83% more meat per person than Senegal
Mauritania: 36.5 kg (2023) · Senegal: 20 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Mauritania has 62 kcal more food per person per day than Senegal
Mauritania: 2,909 kcal (2023) · Senegal: 2,848 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Mauritania: no data · Senegal: 2,335 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Mauritania went to school 1.9 years longer than in Senegal
Mauritania: 4.9 years (2023) · Senegal: 2.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Mauritania: no data · Senegal: 0.09 (2017)
How many World Heritage sites?
Senegal has 5 more World Heritage sites than Mauritania (7 against 2)
Mauritania: 2 (2026) · Senegal: 7 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Senegal has won 1 Olympic medal, Mauritania none
Mauritania: 0 (2026 edition) · Senegal: 1 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
60% of people in Senegal are online, versus 46% in Mauritania
Mauritania: 46% (2024) · Senegal: 60% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in Senegal is 30% faster than in Mauritania
Mauritania: 55 Mbps (2026) · Senegal: 71 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
83% of people in Senegal have electricity, versus 52% in Mauritania
Mauritania: 52.2% (2024) · Senegal: 82.9% (2024)
How many live in cities?
61% of people in Mauritania live in cities, versus 56% in Senegal
Mauritania: 61% (2025) · Senegal: 56% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Senegal has 124 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Mauritania 92
Mauritania: 92 (2024) · Senegal: 124 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Senegal’s railway network is 24% longer than Mauritania’s
Mauritania: 728 km (2021) · Senegal: 906 km (2017)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Mauritania fly 9% more passengers per resident than those from Senegal
Mauritania: 0.06 (2023) · Senegal: 0.06 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 45% of Senegal, but only 1.0% of Mauritania
Mauritania: 1% (2024) · Senegal: 45% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Mauritania emits 33% more CO₂ than someone in Senegal
Mauritania: 1 t (2024) · Senegal: 0.8 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
23% of Mauritania’s electricity is renewable, versus 20% in Senegal
Mauritania: 22.7% (2024) · Senegal: 19.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in Senegal carries 4% more fine dust than in Mauritania
Mauritania: 35.2 µg/m³ (2024) · Senegal: 36.5 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
Mauritania: 1 per 100k (2020) · Senegal: no data
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Senegal are 4.9 times as deadly as in Mauritania
Mauritania: 6.5 per 100k (2023) · Senegal: 31.7 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Senegal is on average 0.9 °C warmer than Mauritania
Mauritania: 28.1°C (2016–2025 avg) · Senegal: 29.1°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Senegal gets 9 times as much rain as Mauritania
Mauritania: 57 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Senegal: 518 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is Mauritania bigger than Senegal?
Mauritania is larger. Senegal fits inside Mauritania 5.2 times.
Which has more people, Mauritania or Senegal?
Senegal has 3.6 times as many people as Mauritania (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Mauritania or Senegal?
Senegal and Mauritania are practically level. Life expectancy at birth is 68.7 years in Mauritania and 68.9 in Senegal.
Are people taller in Mauritania or Senegal?
Men in Senegal are 10.6 cm taller than in Mauritania (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
