Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Sri Lanka is 58% bigger than the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 41,540 km² (2023) · Sri Lanka: 65,610 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Sri Lanka’s coastline is 3 times as long as the Netherlands’.
Netherlands: 451 km (2026 edition) · Sri Lanka: 1,340 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Sri Lanka’s highest peak towers 1,662 m above the Netherlands’.
Netherlands: 862 m (2026 edition) · Sri Lanka: 2,524 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Sri Lanka has 20% more people than the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 18.1 million (2025) · Sri Lanka: 21.8 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The Netherlands is 53% more densely populated than Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 537 per km² (2025) · Sri Lanka: 352 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the Netherlands are 15.7 cm taller than in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 183.8 cm (2019) · Sri Lanka: 168.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the Netherlands are 14.5 cm taller than in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 170.4 cm (2019) · Sri Lanka: 155.9 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the Netherlands is 8.6 years older than in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 41.4 years (2023) · Sri Lanka: 32.8 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Sri Lanka have 0.5 more children on average than in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 1.43 children per woman (2024) · Sri Lanka: 1.95 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
21% of people in the Netherlands are 65 or older, versus 12% in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 20.9% (2025) · Sri Lanka: 12.5% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
The Netherlands has produced 11.1 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Sri Lanka 0.0.
Netherlands: 11.1 (2025) · Sri Lanka: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Sri Lanka has 2 official languages, the Netherlands 1.
Netherlands: 1 (2026) · Sri Lanka: 2 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The Netherlands’ economy is 12 times the size of Sri Lanka’s.
Netherlands: $1.33 trillion (2025) · Sri Lanka: $109 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
The Netherlands produces 5.1 times as much per person as Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: Int$87,320 (2025) · Sri Lanka: Int$17,065 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Sri Lanka than in the Netherlands (Gini 12 points higher).
Netherlands: 25.7 (2021) · Sri Lanka: 37.7 (2019)
How many people are looking for work?
Sri Lanka and the Netherlands are practically level.
Netherlands: 3.9% (2025) · Sri Lanka: 4% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
The Netherlands and Sri Lanka are practically level.
Netherlands: 1.9% (2024) · Sri Lanka: 1.4% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The Netherlands’ price level (US = 100) is 2.9× Sri Lanka’s.
Netherlands: 84% (2025) · Sri Lanka: 29% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The Netherlands spends 51 times as much on health per person as Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: $6,845 (2024) · Sri Lanka: $134 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the Netherlands live 4.3 years longer than in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 82 years (2024) · Sri Lanka: 77.7 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Sri Lanka is 53% more likely to die before turning one than in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 3.4 per 1,000 (2024) · Sri Lanka: 5.2 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The Netherlands has 3.4 times as many doctors per person as Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 3.9 per 1,000 (2022) · Sri Lanka: 1.1 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
17% of adults in the Netherlands are obese, versus 11% in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 16.9% (2024) · Sri Lanka: 11.2% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
Sri Lanka and the Netherlands are practically level.
Netherlands: 20.5% (2024) · Sri Lanka: 20.7% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in the Netherlands rate their lives 3.21 points higher than in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 7.22 (2025) · Sri Lanka: 4.01 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in the Netherlands drink 3.4 times as much alcohol as in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 8.6 litres (2023) · Sri Lanka: 2.5 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The Netherlands has 6.2 times as much meat per person as Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 71.6 kg (2023) · Sri Lanka: 11.6 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The Netherlands has 792 kcal more food per person per day than Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 3,467 kcal (2023) · Sri Lanka: 2,675 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in Sri Lanka put in 614 more hours a year than in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 1,439 hours (2023) · Sri Lanka: 2,053 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the Netherlands went to school 1.9 years longer than in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 12.7 years (2023) · Sri Lanka: 10.8 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The Netherlands welcomed 28 times as many tourists per resident as Sri Lanka (2019).
Netherlands: 0.91 (2022) · Sri Lanka: 0.03 (2022)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
97% of people in the Netherlands are online, versus 55% in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 97% (2024) · Sri Lanka: 55% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
The Netherlands and Sri Lanka are practically level.
Netherlands: 100% (2024) · Sri Lanka: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
96% of people in the Netherlands live in cities, versus 20% in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 96% (2025) · Sri Lanka: 20% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Sri Lanka has 133 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, the Netherlands 129.
Netherlands: 129 (2024) · Sri Lanka: 133 (2024)
How much railway is there?
The Netherlands’ railway network is 95% longer than Sri Lanka’s.
Netherlands: 3,041 km (2021) · Sri Lanka: 1,562 km (2019)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the Netherlands fly 13 times as many passengers per resident as those from Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 2.29 (2023) · Sri Lanka: 0.18 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 34% of Sri Lanka, but only 11% of the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 11.1% (2023) · Sri Lanka: 34% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the Netherlands emits 7 times as much CO₂ as someone in Sri Lanka.
Netherlands: 6.3 t (2024) · Sri Lanka: 0.9 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
62% of Sri Lanka’s electricity is renewable, versus 51% in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 51.2% (2025) · Sri Lanka: 61.6% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Sri Lanka carries 2.2 times as much fine dust as in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 9.6 µg/m³ (2024) · Sri Lanka: 20.7 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 4.8 times as likely to be murdered in Sri Lanka as in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 0.7 per 100k (2023) · Sri Lanka: 3.3 per 100k (2019)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Sri Lanka are 3.4 times as deadly as in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 3.4 per 100k (2021) · Sri Lanka: 11.5 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Sri Lanka is on average 15.6 °C warmer than the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 11.2°C (2016–2025 avg) · Sri Lanka: 26.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Sri Lanka gets 2.1 times as much rain as the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 887 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Sri Lanka: 1,839 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is the Netherlands bigger than Sri Lanka?
Sri Lanka is larger. Sri Lanka is 58% bigger than the Netherlands.
Which has more people, the Netherlands or Sri Lanka?
Sri Lanka has 20% more people than the Netherlands (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, the Netherlands or Sri Lanka?
People in the Netherlands live 4.3 years longer than in Sri Lanka. Life expectancy at birth is 82.0 years in the Netherlands and 77.7 in Sri Lanka.
Are people taller in the Netherlands or Sri Lanka?
Men in the Netherlands are 15.7 cm taller than in Sri Lanka (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
