The duel
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?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 111,370 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Vatican City: 0 km (2026 edition) · World median: 440 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
The median country’s highest peak towers 2,257 m above Vatican City’s
Vatican City: 78 m (2026 edition) · World median: 2,335 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 37.8% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 7.4 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 98 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 173.5 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 160.6 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Vatican City is 29 years older than in the median country
Vatican City: 59.6 years (2023) · World median: 31.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 1.9 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 8.6% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 0.8 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
Vatican City has 2 official languages, the median country 1
Vatican City: 2 (2026) · World median: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Vatican City: no data · World median: $45.5 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Vatican City: no data · World median: Int$21,072 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 34.4 (2023)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 1.6% (2023)
How many people are looking for work?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 5.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 1.8% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 17% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 45% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Vatican City: no data · World median: $470 (2023)
How long do people live?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 74.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 12.7 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 1.7 per 1,000 (2022)
How many hospital beds are there?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 2.4 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is suicide?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 10 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 24% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 19% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 5.83 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 4.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 56.2 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 2,938 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 1,974 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 9.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 0.34 (2024)
How many World Heritage sites?
The median country has 1 more World Heritage site than Vatican City (3 against 2)
Vatican City: 2 (2026) · World median: 3 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 4 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 82% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 161 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 64% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 115 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 2,141 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 0.24 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 32.8% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 3 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 30.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in the median country carries 23% more fine dust than in Vatican City
Vatican City: 13.5 µg/m³ (2024) · World median: 16.6 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
Vatican City: 0 per 100k (2023) · World median: 2.3 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 18.6 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 23°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Vatican City: no data · World median: 1,014 mm (2016–2025 avg)
