The duel
- +13% The median country is 13% bigger than the United Arab Emirates
- +56% The United Arab Emirates has 56% more people than the median country
- +8.5 years People in the United Arab Emirates live 8.5 years longer than in the median country
- 3.8× The United Arab Emirates produces 3.8 times as much per person as the median country
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 is 13% bigger than the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 98,648 km² (2024) · World median: 111,370 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
The United Arab Emirates’ coastline is 3 times as long as the median country’s
United Arab Emirates: 1,318 km (2026 edition) · World median: 440 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
The median country’s highest peak towers 430 m above the United Arab Emirates’
United Arab Emirates: 1,905 m (2026 edition) · World median: 2,335 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 38% of the median country, versus 5.6% of the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2024) · World median: 37.8% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
The United Arab Emirates has 56% more people than the median country
United Arab Emirates: 11.5 million (2025) · World median: 7.4 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The United Arab Emirates is 65% more densely populated than the median country
United Arab Emirates: 162 per km² (2025) · World median: 98 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
The United Arab Emirates and the median country are practically level
United Arab Emirates: 174.1 cm (2019) · World median: 173.5 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
The median country and the United Arab Emirates are practically level
United Arab Emirates: 160.5 cm (2019) · World median: 160.6 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The United Arab Emirates and the median country are practically level
United Arab Emirates: 31.2 years (2023) · World median: 31.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in the median country have 0.7 more children on average than in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 1.21 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 1.8% in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 1.8% (2025) · World median: 8.6% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
The median country hosts 6.9 times as many refugees per resident as the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 0.1 per 1,000 (2025) · World median: 0.8 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
The United Arab Emirates and the median country are practically level
United Arab Emirates: 0 (2026) · World median: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
The United Arab Emirates and the median country are practically level
United Arab Emirates: 1 (2026) · World median: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The United Arab Emirates’ economy is 12 times the size of the median country’s
United Arab Emirates: $552 billion (2024) · World median: $45.5 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
The United Arab Emirates produces 3.8 times as much per person as the median country
United Arab Emirates: Int$79,344 (2024) · World median: Int$21,072 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in the median country than in the United Arab Emirates (Gini 8 points higher)
United Arab Emirates: 26.4 (2018) · World median: 34.4 (2023)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
1.6% of people in the median country live on less than $3 a day, versus 0% in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 0% (2018) · World median: 1.6% (2023)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 5.1% in the median country, versus 2.2% in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 2.2% (2025) · World median: 5.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
The United Arab Emirates spends 5.6% of its GDP on the military, the median country 1.8%
United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2014) · World median: 1.8% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
The median country’s central government collects 17% of GDP in tax, the United Arab Emirates’ 0.6%
United Arab Emirates: 0.6% (2024) · World median: 17% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The United Arab Emirates’ price level (US = 100) is 1.4× the median country’s
United Arab Emirates: 63% (2024) · World median: 45% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United Arab Emirates spends 5.1 times as much on health per person as the median country
United Arab Emirates: $2,402 (2023) · World median: $470 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 8.5 years longer than in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 83.1 years (2024) · World median: 74.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in the median country is 3.3 times as likely to die before turning one as in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 3.8 per 1,000 (2024) · World median: 12.7 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The United Arab Emirates has 79% more doctors per person than the median country
United Arab Emirates: 3 per 1,000 (2023) · World median: 1.7 per 1,000 (2022)
How many hospital beds are there?
The median country has 29% more hospital beds per person than the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 1.9 per 1,000 (2022) · World median: 2.4 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in the median country is 3.6 times that in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 2.8 per 100k (2023) · World median: 10 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
30% of adults in the United Arab Emirates are obese, versus 24% in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 30.3% (2024) · World median: 24% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
19% of adults in the median country smoke, versus 9.0% in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 9% (2024) · World median: 19% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in the United Arab Emirates rate their lives 0.99 points higher than in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 6.82 (2025) · World median: 5.83 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in the median country drink 6.8 times as much alcohol as in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 0.6 litres (2023) · World median: 4.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The United Arab Emirates has 21% more meat per person than the median country
United Arab Emirates: 67.8 kg (2023) · World median: 56.2 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The United Arab Emirates has 187 kcal more food per person per day than the median country
United Arab Emirates: 3,125 kcal (2023) · World median: 2,938 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the United Arab Emirates put in 540 more hours a year than in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 2,514 hours (2023) · World median: 1,974 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the United Arab Emirates went to school 3.1 years longer than in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 13 years (2023) · World median: 9.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The United Arab Emirates welcomed 6.6 times as many tourists per resident as the median country (2019)
United Arab Emirates: 2.28 (2019) · World median: 0.34 (2024)
How many World Heritage sites?
The United Arab Emirates and the median country are practically level
United Arab Emirates: 3 (2026) · World median: 3 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
The median country has won 4 Olympic medals, the United Arab Emirates 2
United Arab Emirates: 2 (2026 edition) · World median: 4 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
100% of people in the United Arab Emirates are online, versus 82% in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024) · World median: 82% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in the United Arab Emirates is 2.2 times as fast as in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 358 Mbps (2026) · World median: 161 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
The United Arab Emirates and the median country are practically level
United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024) · World median: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
86% of people in the United Arab Emirates live in cities, versus 64% in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 86% (2025) · World median: 64% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The United Arab Emirates has 203 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, the median country 115
United Arab Emirates: 203 (2024) · World median: 115 (2024)
How much railway is there?
The median country’s railway network is 7.7 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’
United Arab Emirates: 279 km (2021) · World median: 2,141 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United Arab Emirates fly 33 times as many passengers per resident as those from the median country
United Arab Emirates: 7.91 (2023) · World median: 0.24 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 33% of the median country, but only 4.6% of the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 4.6% (2024) · World median: 32.8% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the United Arab Emirates emits 6.7 times as much CO₂ as someone in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 20.1 t (2024) · World median: 3 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
31% of the median country’s electricity is renewable, versus 8.8% in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 8.8% (2024) · World median: 30.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in the United Arab Emirates carries 3.4 times as much fine dust as in the median country
United Arab Emirates: 55.7 µg/m³ (2024) · World median: 16.6 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 3.3 times as likely to be murdered in the median country as in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 0.7 per 100k (2022) · World median: 2.3 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in the median country are 2.7 times as deadly as in the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 6.9 per 100k (2023) · World median: 18.6 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
The United Arab Emirates is on average 5.9 °C warmer than the median country
United Arab Emirates: 28.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · World median: 23°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
The median country gets 22 times as much rain as the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: 47 mm (2016–2025 avg) · World median: 1,014 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is the United Arab Emirates bigger than the median country?
The median country is larger. The median country is 13% bigger than the United Arab Emirates.
Which has more people, the United Arab Emirates or the median country?
The United Arab Emirates has 56% more people than the median country (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, the United Arab Emirates or the median country?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 8.5 years longer than in the median country. Life expectancy at birth is 83.1 years in the United Arab Emirates and 74.6 in the median country.
Are people taller in the United Arab Emirates or the median country?
The United Arab Emirates and the median country are practically level (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
