The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The United Arab Emirates fits inside Poland 3.2 times
Poland: 313,940 km² (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 98,648 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
The United Arab Emirates’ coastline is 3 times as long as Poland’s
Poland: 440 km (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,318 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Poland’s highest peak towers 594 m above the United Arab Emirates’
Poland: 2,499 m (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,905 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 46% of Poland, versus 5.6% of the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 46.2% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Poland has 3.2 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 36.4 million (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 11.5 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The United Arab Emirates is 36% more densely populated than Poland
Poland: 119 per km² (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 162 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Poland are 6.6 cm taller than in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 180.7 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 174.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Poland are 5.3 cm taller than in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 165.8 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 160.5 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Poland is 10 years older than in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 41.3 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 31.2 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in the United Arab Emirates have 0.1 more children on average than in Poland
Poland: 1.14 children per woman (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 1.21 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
21% of people in Poland are 65 or older, versus 1.8% in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 20.8% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 1.8% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Poland hosts 227 times as many refugees per resident as the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 27.2 per 1,000 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 0.1 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Poland has produced 7.7 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, the United Arab Emirates none
Poland: 7.7 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
Poland and the United Arab Emirates are practically level
Poland: 1 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Poland’s economy is 87% larger than the United Arab Emirates’
Poland: $1.04 trillion (2025) · United Arab Emirates: $552 billion (2024)
How much is produced per person?
The United Arab Emirates produces 46% more per person than Poland
Poland: Int$54,262 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: Int$79,344 (2024)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Poland than in the United Arab Emirates (Gini 2.1 points higher)
Poland: 28.5 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 26.4 (2018)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
Poland and the United Arab Emirates are practically level
Poland: 0.2% (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 0% (2018)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 3.0% in Poland, versus 2.2% in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 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, Poland 4.5%
Poland: 4.5% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2014)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Poland’s central government collects 17% of GDP in tax, the United Arab Emirates’ 0.6%
Poland: 17.4% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 0.6% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The United Arab Emirates’ price level (US = 100) is 1.2× Poland’s
Poland: 52% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 63% (2024)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United Arab Emirates spends 19% more on health per person than Poland
Poland: $2,014 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: $2,402 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 4.7 years longer than in Poland
Poland: 78.4 years (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 83.1 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in the United Arab Emirates is 6% more likely to die before turning one than in Poland
Poland: 3.6 per 1,000 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 3.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Poland has 35% more doctors per person than the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 4 per 1,000 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
Poland has 3.2 times as many hospital beds per person as the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 6 per 1,000 (2022) · United Arab Emirates: 1.9 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Poland is 4.8 times that in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 13.4 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 26% in Poland
Poland: 25.9% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 30.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
22% of adults in Poland smoke, versus 9.0% in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 21.7% (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 0.05 points higher than in Poland
Poland: 6.77 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Poland drink 18 times as much alcohol as in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 11.5 litres (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 0.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Poland has 23% more meat per person than the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 83.3 kg (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 67.8 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Poland has 605 kcal more food per person per day than the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 3,730 kcal (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3,125 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the United Arab Emirates put in 708 more hours a year than in Poland
Poland: 1,807 hours (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 2,514 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Poland went to school 0.22 years longer than in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 13.2 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 13 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The United Arab Emirates welcomed 4.2 times as many tourists per resident as Poland (2019)
Poland: 0.54 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 2.28 (2019)
How many World Heritage sites?
Poland has 15 more World Heritage sites than the United Arab Emirates (18 against 3)
Poland: 18 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 3 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Poland has won 335 Olympic medals, the United Arab Emirates 2
Poland: 335 (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 89% in Poland
Poland: 89% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in the United Arab Emirates is 24% faster than in Poland
Poland: 288 Mbps (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 358 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
Poland and the United Arab Emirates are practically level
Poland: 100% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
86% of people in the United Arab Emirates live in cities, versus 60% in Poland
Poland: 60% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 86% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The United Arab Emirates has 203 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Poland 138
Poland: 138 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 203 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Poland’s railway network is 67 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’
Poland: 18,620 km (2021) · United Arab Emirates: 279 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United Arab Emirates fly 33 times as many passengers per resident as those from Poland
Poland: 0.24 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 7.91 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 31% of Poland, but only 4.6% of the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 31% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 4.6% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the United Arab Emirates emits 2.8 times as much CO₂ as someone in Poland
Poland: 7.1 t (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 20.1 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
32% of Poland’s electricity is renewable, versus 8.8% in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 31.5% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 8.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in the United Arab Emirates carries 3.6 times as much fine dust as in Poland
Poland: 15.6 µg/m³ (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 55.7 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 16% more likely to be murdered in Poland than in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 0.8 per 100k (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 0.7 per 100k (2022)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Poland are 67% deadlier than in the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 11.5 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 19.1 °C warmer than Poland
Poland: 9.7°C (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 28.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Poland gets 16 times as much rain as the United Arab Emirates
Poland: 763 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 Poland bigger than the United Arab Emirates?
Poland is larger. The United Arab Emirates fits inside Poland 3.2 times.
Which has more people, Poland or the United Arab Emirates?
Poland has 3.2 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Poland or the United Arab Emirates?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 4.7 years longer than in Poland. Life expectancy at birth is 78.4 years in Poland and 83.1 in the United Arab Emirates.
Are people taller in Poland or the United Arab Emirates?
Men in Poland are 6.6 cm taller than in the United Arab Emirates (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
