The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Sri Lanka fits inside the United States 150 times.
Sri Lanka: 65,610 km² (2023) · United States: 9,831,510 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
The United States’ coastline is 15 times as long as Sri Lanka’s.
Sri Lanka: 1,340 km (2026 edition) · United States: 19,924 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
The United States’ highest peak towers 3,666 m above Sri Lanka’s.
Sri Lanka: 2,524 m (2026 edition) · United States: 6,190 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
The United States has 16 times as many people as Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 21.8 million (2025) · United States: 342 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Sri Lanka is 9.4 times as densely populated as the United States.
Sri Lanka: 352 per km² (2025) · United States: 37 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the United States are 8.9 cm taller than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 168.1 cm (2019) · United States: 176.9 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the United States are 7.4 cm taller than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 155.9 cm (2019) · United States: 163.3 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the United States is 5.2 years older than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 32.8 years (2023) · United States: 38 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Sri Lanka have 0.3 more children on average than in the United States.
Sri Lanka: 1.95 children per woman (2024) · United States: 1.63 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
18% of people in the United States are 65 or older, versus 12% in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 12.5% (2025) · United States: 18.4% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
The United States has produced 8.7 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Sri Lanka 0.0.
Sri Lanka: 0 (2025) · United States: 8.7 (2025)
How many official languages?
Sri Lanka has 2 official languages, the United States 1.
Sri Lanka: 2 (2026) · United States: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The United States’ economy is 283 times the size of Sri Lanka’s.
Sri Lanka: $109 billion (2025) · United States: $30.8 trillion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
The United States produces 5.3 times as much per person as Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: Int$17,065 (2025) · United States: Int$90,027 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in the United States than in Sri Lanka (Gini 4.1 points higher).
Sri Lanka: 37.7 (2019) · United States: 41.8 (2024)
How many people are looking for work?
The United States and Sri Lanka are practically level.
Sri Lanka: 4% (2025) · United States: 4.2% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
The United States spends 3.4% of its GDP on the military, Sri Lanka 1.4%.
Sri Lanka: 1.4% (2024) · United States: 3.4% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The United States’ price level (US = 100) is 3.4× Sri Lanka’s.
Sri Lanka: 29% (2025) · United States: 100% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United States spends 100 times as much on health per person as Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: $134 (2023) · United States: $13,473 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the United States live 1.2 years longer than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 77.7 years (2024) · United States: 78.9 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in the United States is 6% more likely to die before turning one than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 5.2 per 1,000 (2024) · United States: 5.5 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The United States has 3.2 times as many doctors per person as Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 1.1 per 1,000 (2023) · United States: 3.7 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is obesity?
42% of adults in the United States are obese, versus 11% in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 11.2% (2024) · United States: 41.8% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
21% of adults in Sri Lanka smoke, versus 16% in the United States.
Sri Lanka: 20.7% (2024) · United States: 15.8% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in the United States rate their lives 2.80 points higher than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 4.01 (2025) · United States: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in the United States drink 3.8 times as much alcohol as in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 2.5 litres (2023) · United States: 9.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The United States has 11 times as much meat per person as Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 11.6 kg (2023) · United States: 122.1 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The United States has 1,272 kcal more food per person per day than Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 2,675 kcal (2023) · United States: 3,947 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in Sri Lanka put in 264 more hours a year than in the United States.
Sri Lanka: 2,053 hours (2023) · United States: 1,789 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the United States went to school 3.1 years longer than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 10.8 years (2023) · United States: 13.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The United States welcomed 6.6 times as many tourists per resident as Sri Lanka (2019).
Sri Lanka: 0.03 (2022) · United States: 0.21 (2024)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
95% of people in the United States are online, versus 55% in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 55% (2024) · United States: 95% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
Sri Lanka and the United States are practically level.
Sri Lanka: 100% (2024) · United States: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
80% of people in the United States live in cities, versus 20% in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 20% (2025) · United States: 80% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Sri Lanka has 133 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, the United States 113.
Sri Lanka: 133 (2024) · United States: 113 (2024)
How much railway is there?
The United States’ railway network is 95 times as long as Sri Lanka’s.
Sri Lanka: 1,562 km (2019) · United States: 148,553 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United States fly 16 times as many passengers per resident as those from Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 0.18 (2023) · United States: 2.75 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Sri Lanka and the United States are practically level.
Sri Lanka: 34% (2023) · United States: 33.9% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the United States emits 16 times as much CO₂ as someone in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 0.9 t (2024) · United States: 14.2 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
62% of Sri Lanka’s electricity is renewable, versus 26% in the United States.
Sri Lanka: 61.6% (2025) · United States: 25.6% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Sri Lanka carries 2.8 times as much fine dust as in the United States.
Sri Lanka: 20.7 µg/m³ (2024) · United States: 7.5 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 74% more likely to be murdered in the United States than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 3.3 per 100k (2019) · United States: 5.8 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in the United States are 23% deadlier than in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka: 11.5 per 100k (2021) · United States: 14.2 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Sri Lanka is on average 16.5 °C warmer than the United States.
Sri Lanka: 26.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · United States: 10.3°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Sri Lanka gets 2.2 times as much rain as the United States.
Sri Lanka: 1,839 mm (2016–2025 avg) · United States: 849 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Sri Lanka bigger than the United States?
The United States is larger. Sri Lanka fits inside the United States 150 times.
Which has more people, Sri Lanka or the United States?
The United States has 16 times as many people as Sri Lanka (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Sri Lanka or the United States?
People in the United States live 1.2 years longer than in Sri Lanka. Life expectancy at birth is 77.7 years in Sri Lanka and 78.9 in the United States.
Are people taller in Sri Lanka or the United States?
Men in the United States are 8.9 cm taller than in Sri Lanka (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
