CountryDuel

Land

Size, shape and altitude

Total area

How big is it, really?

Zambia is 93% bigger than Zimbabwe

Zambia: 752,612 km² (2024) · Zimbabwe: 390,760 km² (2024)

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Coastline

How much coast is there?

Zambia: 0 km (2026 edition) · Zimbabwe: 0 km (2026 edition)

Highest point

How high can you climb?

Zimbabwe’s highest peak towers 262 m above Zambia’s

Zambia: 2,330 m (2026 edition) · Zimbabwe: 2,592 m (2026 edition)

Farmland

How much of the land is farmed?

Farmland covers 48% of Zimbabwe, versus 32% of Zambia

Zambia: 32.1% (2024) · Zimbabwe: 48.1% (2024)

How far apart are they?

People

Who lives there, and how closely

Population

How many people live there?

Zambia has 29% more people than Zimbabwe

Zambia: 21.9 million (2025) · Zimbabwe: 17 million (2025)

Population density

How crowded is it?

Zimbabwe is 49% more densely populated than Zambia

Zambia: 29 per km² (2025) · Zimbabwe: 44 per km² (2025)

Height of men

How tall are the men?

Men in Zimbabwe are 3.1 cm taller than in Zambia

Zambia: 167.6 cm (2019) · Zimbabwe: 170.7 cm (2019)

Height of women

How tall are the women?

Women in Zimbabwe are 2.5 cm taller than in Zambia

Zambia: 157.3 cm (2019) · Zimbabwe: 159.9 cm (2019)

Median age

How old is the typical person?

The typical person in Zimbabwe is 0.32 years older than in Zambia

Zambia: 17.5 years (2023) · Zimbabwe: 17.8 years (2023)

Fertility rate

How many children per woman?

Women in Zambia have 0.4 more children on average than in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 4.04 children per woman (2024) · Zimbabwe: 3.67 children per woman (2024)

Aged 65 and over

How many people are 65 or older?

3.6% of people in Zimbabwe are 65 or older, versus 2.0% in Zambia

Zambia: 2% (2025) · Zimbabwe: 3.6% (2025)

Refugees hosted per 1,000 residents

How many refugees does it host?

Zambia hosts 7.5 times as many refugees per resident as Zimbabwe

Zambia: 3.8 per 1,000 (2025) · Zimbabwe: 0.5 per 1,000 (2025)

Nobel laureates per 10 million people

How many Nobel laureates were born there?

Zimbabwe has produced 0.6 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Zambia none

Zambia: 0 (2026) · Zimbabwe: 0.6 (2026)

Official languages

How many official languages?

Zimbabwe has 15 official languages, Zambia 1

Zambia: 1 (2026) · Zimbabwe: 15 (2026)

What shape is the population?

Money

What an economy looks like per person

Economy size (GDP)

How big is the economy?

Zimbabwe’s economy is 77% larger than Zambia’s

Zambia: $28.9 billion (2025) · Zimbabwe: $51.2 billion (2025)

GDP per person (PPP)

How much is produced per person?

Zimbabwe produces 48% more per person than Zambia

Zambia: Int$4,379 (2025) · Zimbabwe: Int$6,470 (2025)

Income inequality (Gini)

How evenly is income shared?

Income is more unequally shared in Zambia than in Zimbabwe (Gini 1.2 points higher)

Zambia: 51.5 (2022) · Zimbabwe: 50.3 (2019)

Extreme poverty ($3.00 a day)

How many live on less than $3 a day?

72% of people in Zambia live on less than $3 a day, versus 49% in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 71.7% (2022) · Zimbabwe: 49.2% (2019)

Unemployment

How many people are looking for work?

Unemployment is 9.3% in Zimbabwe, versus 5.9% in Zambia

Zambia: 5.9% (2025) · Zimbabwe: 9.3% (2025)

Military spending

How much goes to the military?

Zambia spends 1.3% of its GDP on the military, Zimbabwe 0.6%

Zambia: 1.3% (2025) · Zimbabwe: 0.6% (2025)

Tax revenue (central government)

How much does the central government collect in tax?

Zambia’s central government collects 19% of GDP in tax, Zimbabwe’s 7.2%

Zambia: 18.8% (2024) · Zimbabwe: 7.2% (2018)

Price level (US = 100)

How expensive is it?

Zimbabwe’s price level (US = 100) is 1.6× Zambia’s

Zambia: 30% (2025) · Zimbabwe: 47% (2025)

Health

Long lives, small beginnings

Health spending per person

How much is spent on health?

Zambia spends 26% more on health per person than Zimbabwe

Zambia: $80 (2023) · Zimbabwe: $63 (2023)

Life expectancy

How long do people live?

People in Zambia live 3.5 years longer than in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 66.5 years (2024) · Zimbabwe: 63.1 years (2024)

Infant mortality

How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?

A baby in Zimbabwe is 80% more likely to die before turning one than in Zambia

Zambia: 34.6 per 1,000 (2024) · Zimbabwe: 62.4 per 1,000 (2024)

Doctors

How many doctors are there?

Zambia has 2.4 times as many doctors per person as Zimbabwe

Zambia: 0.3 per 1,000 (2022) · Zimbabwe: 0.1 per 1,000 (2023)

Suicide rate

How common is suicide?

The suicide rate in Zambia is 37% higher than in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 20.7 per 100k (2023) · Zimbabwe: 15.1 per 100k (2023)

Adult obesity

How common is obesity?

13% of adults in Zimbabwe are obese, versus 10% in Zambia

Zambia: 10.1% (2024) · Zimbabwe: 13.1% (2024)

Smoking

How many adults smoke?

14% of adults in Zambia smoke, versus 11% in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 14.3% (2024) · Zimbabwe: 11% (2024)

Everyday life

Plates, glasses and happiness

Life satisfaction

How do people rate their lives?

People in Zambia rate their lives 0.76 points higher than in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 4.11 (2025) · Zimbabwe: 3.35 (2025)

Alcohol consumption

How much do people drink?

Adults in Zimbabwe drink 2.5 times as much alcohol as in Zambia

Zambia: 2.1 litres (2023) · Zimbabwe: 5.4 litres (2023)

Meat supply

How much meat is on the menu?

Zimbabwe has 3.3 times as much meat per person as Zambia

Zambia: 17.6 kg (2023) · Zimbabwe: 57.6 kg (2023)

Daily calories

How much food is there per day?

Zimbabwe has 224 kcal more food per person per day than Zambia

Zambia: 2,170 kcal (2023) · Zimbabwe: 2,393 kcal (2023)

Working hours

How long do people work?

Workers in Zimbabwe put in 111 more hours a year than in Zambia

Zambia: 2,200 hours (2023) · Zimbabwe: 2,311 hours (2023)

Years of schooling

How long do people go to school?

Adults in Zimbabwe went to school 1.5 years longer than in Zambia

Zambia: 7.4 years (2023) · Zimbabwe: 8.9 years (2023)

Tourists per resident

How many tourists visit?

Zambia: 0.07 (2019) · Zimbabwe: no data

World Heritage sites

How many World Heritage sites?

Zimbabwe has 4 more World Heritage sites than Zambia (5 against 1)

Zambia: 1 (2026) · Zimbabwe: 5 (2026)

Olympic medals (all time)

How many Olympic medals has it won?

Zimbabwe has won 8 Olympic medals, Zambia 3

Zambia: 3 (2026 edition) · Zimbabwe: 8 (2026 edition)

Connected

Online, electrified, urban

Internet users

How many people are online?

42% of people in Zimbabwe are online, versus 17% in Zambia

Zambia: 17% (2024) · Zimbabwe: 42% (2024)

Fixed broadband download speed

How fast is home internet?

Home internet in Zambia is 49% faster than in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 69 Mbps (2026) · Zimbabwe: 46 Mbps (2026)

Access to electricity

Who has electricity at home?

62% of people in Zimbabwe have electricity, versus 54% in Zambia

Zambia: 53.6% (2024) · Zimbabwe: 62% (2024)

Urban population

How many live in cities?

46% of people in Zambia live in cities, versus 40% in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 46% (2025) · Zimbabwe: 40% (2025)

Mobile subscriptions

How many phones per person?

Zambia has 109 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Zimbabwe 94

Zambia: 109 (2024) · Zimbabwe: 94 (2024)

Railway network

How much railway is there?

Zimbabwe’s railway network is 2.5 times as long as Zambia’s

Zambia: 1,248 km (2019) · Zimbabwe: 3,120 km (2020)

Air passengers per resident

How much do they fly?

Airlines from Zambia fly 2.7 times as many passengers per resident as those from Zimbabwe

Zambia: 0.01 (2023) · Zimbabwe: 0.01 (2023)

Planet

Air, forests and energy

Forest cover

How much of the land is forest?

Forest covers 60% of Zambia, but only 36% of Zimbabwe

Zambia: 60.5% (2024) · Zimbabwe: 35.7% (2024)

CO₂ per person

How much CO₂ does each person emit?

The average person in Zimbabwe emits 46% more CO₂ than someone in Zambia

Zambia: 0.6 t (2024) · Zimbabwe: 0.8 t (2024)

Renewable electricity

How green is the power grid?

87% of Zambia’s electricity is renewable, versus 57% in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 87.5% (2024) · Zimbabwe: 57.1% (2024)

Air pollution (PM2.5)

How clean is the air?

The air in Zambia carries 26% more fine dust than in Zimbabwe

Zambia: 25.4 µg/m³ (2024) · Zimbabwe: 20.1 µg/m³ (2024)

Where does the power come from?

Safety

Measured risk, not vibes

Homicide rate

How common is murder?

You are 30% more likely to be murdered in Zimbabwe than in Zambia

Zambia: 5.2 per 100k (2015) · Zimbabwe: 6.8 per 100k (2022)

Road deaths

How dangerous are the roads?

Roads in Zimbabwe are 81% deadlier than in Zambia

Zambia: 25.2 per 100k (2023) · Zimbabwe: 45.6 per 100k (2023)

Climate

What the year feels like

Average temperature

How warm is it?

Zambia is on average 0.3 °C warmer than Zimbabwe

Zambia: 22.3°C (2016–2025 avg) · Zimbabwe: 22°C (2016–2025 avg)

Rainfall

How much rain falls?

Zambia gets 49% more rain than Zimbabwe

Zambia: 1,116 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Zimbabwe: 751 mm (2016–2025 avg)

What does the year feel like?

Between them

People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other

Who has moved between them?
Can they visit without a visa?
What do they sell each other?
Have they met on the pitch?
Time machine

Quick answers

Is Zambia bigger than Zimbabwe?

Zambia is larger. Zambia is 93% bigger than Zimbabwe.

Which has more people, Zambia or Zimbabwe?

Zambia has 29% more people than Zimbabwe (2025 estimates).

Where do people live longer, Zambia or Zimbabwe?

People in Zambia live 3.5 years longer than in Zimbabwe. Life expectancy at birth is 66.5 years in Zambia and 63.1 in Zimbabwe.

Are people taller in Zambia or Zimbabwe?

Men in Zimbabwe are 3.1 cm taller than in Zambia (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).

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