World median is the middle country on each statistic: half of all countries with data are above it, half below. It is not an average, so it is never pulled up or down by giants or microstates.
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The median country fits inside Somalia 5.7 times.
Somalia: 637,660 km² (2023) · World median: 111,370 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Somalia’s coastline is 6.9 times as long as the median country’s.
Somalia: 3,025 km (2026 edition) · World median: 440 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Somalia’s highest peak towers 125 m above the median country’s.
Somalia: 2,460 m (2026 edition) · World median: 2,335 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Somalia has 2.7 times as many people as the median country.
Somalia: 19.7 million (2025) · World median: 7.4 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The median country is 3.1 times as densely populated as Somalia.
Somalia: 31 per km² (2025) · World median: 98 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the median country are 2.3 cm taller than in Somalia.
Somalia: 171.2 cm (2019) · World median: 173.5 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
The median country and Somalia are practically level.
Somalia: 159.9 cm (2019) · World median: 160.6 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the median country is 16 years older than in Somalia.
Somalia: 15.4 years (2023) · World median: 31.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Somalia have 4.1 more children on average than in the median country.
Somalia: 6.01 children per woman (2024) · World median: 1.9 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
8.6% of people in the median country are 65 or older, versus 2.6% in Somalia.
Somalia: 2.6% (2025) · World median: 8.6% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Somalia and the median country are practically level.
Somalia: 0 (2025) · World median: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Somalia has 2 official languages, the median country 1.
Somalia: 2 (2026) · World median: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The median country’s economy is 3.5 times the size of Somalia’s.
Somalia: $13 billion (2025) · World median: $45.5 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
The median country produces 13 times as much per person as Somalia.
Somalia: Int$1,643 (2025) · World median: Int$21,072 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Somalia: no data · World median: 34.4 (2023)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 19% in Somalia, versus 5.1% in the median country.
Somalia: 18.9% (2025) · World median: 5.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
The median country and Somalia are practically level.
Somalia: 1.6% (2024) · World median: 1.7% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The median country’s price level (US = 100) is 1.1× Somalia’s.
Somalia: 40% (2025) · World median: 45% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The median country spends 21 times as much on health per person as Somalia.
Somalia: $22 (2023) · World median: $470 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the median country live 16 years longer than in Somalia.
Somalia: 59 years (2024) · World median: 74.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Somalia is 5.2 times as likely to die before turning one as in the median country.
Somalia: 65.4 per 1,000 (2024) · World median: 12.7 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The median country has 35 times as many doctors per person as Somalia.
Somalia: 0.048 per 1,000 (2014) · World median: 1.7 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is obesity?
24% of adults in the median country are obese, versus 13% in Somalia.
Somalia: 13% (2024) · World median: 24% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
Somalia: no data · World median: 19% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in the median country rate their lives 1.33 points higher than in Somalia.
Somalia: 4.51 (2025) · World median: 5.83 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Somalia: no data · World median: 4.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The median country has 5.1 times as much meat per person as Somalia.
Somalia: 11.1 kg (2022) · World median: 56.2 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The median country has 1,125 kcal more food per person per day than Somalia.
Somalia: 1,812 kcal (2022) · World median: 2,938 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Somalia: no data · World median: 1,974 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the median country went to school 8 years longer than in Somalia.
Somalia: 1.9 years (2023) · World median: 9.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Somalia: no data · World median: 0.34 (2024)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
82% of people in the median country are online, versus 28% in Somalia.
Somalia: 28% (2024) · World median: 82% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in the median country have electricity, versus 54% in Somalia.
Somalia: 54.4% (2024) · World median: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
64% of people in the median country live in cities, versus 55% in Somalia.
Somalia: 55% (2025) · World median: 64% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The median country has 115 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Somalia 54.
Somalia: 54 (2023) · World median: 115 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Somalia: no data · World median: 2,141 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the median country fly 138 times as many passengers per resident as those from Somalia.
Somalia: 0 (2019) · World median: 0.24 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 31% of the median country, but only 9.2% of Somalia.
Somalia: 9.2% (2023) · World median: 31.2% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the median country emits 43 times as much CO₂ as someone in Somalia.
Somalia: 0.1 t (2024) · World median: 3 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
31% of the median country’s electricity is renewable, versus 21% in Somalia.
Somalia: 20.9% (2024) · World median: 30.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in the median country carries 44% more fine dust than in Somalia.
Somalia: 11.5 µg/m³ (2024) · World median: 16.6 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
Somalia: no data · World median: 2.3 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Somalia are 64% deadlier than in the median country.
Somalia: 20.2 per 100k (2021) · World median: 12.3 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Somalia is on average 4.0 °C warmer than the median country.
Somalia: 27°C (2016–2025 avg) · World median: 23°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
The median country gets 3.9 times as much rain as Somalia.
Somalia: 258 mm (2016–2025 avg) · World median: 1,014 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Somalia bigger than the median country?
Somalia is larger. The median country fits inside Somalia 5.7 times.
Which has more people, Somalia or the median country?
Somalia has 2.7 times as many people as the median country (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Somalia or the median country?
People in the median country live 16 years longer than in Somalia. Life expectancy at birth is 59.0 years in Somalia and 74.6 in the median country.
Are people taller in Somalia or the median country?
Men in the median country are 2.3 cm taller than in Somalia (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
