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World Measure
Compare · Countries

🇮🇶 Iraq vs 🇸🇾 Syria

Population difference
21,400,347
47M
Iraq
25.6M
Syria
83.5%
Iraq is larger by

35 indicators below, published by both countries and set side by side. They differ most on inflation rate, where Syria’s figure is 44.3× higher.

Indicators compared
35
Published by both countries
Iraq
by population · Asia
Syria
by population · Asia

Side by Side

Each bar is scaled against the larger of the two values, so the gap is visible rather than only stated.

Population
Iraq47,020,774
Syria25,620,427
Land Areakm²
Iraq434,130 km²
Syria183,630 km²
Population Density/km²
Iraq104/km²
Syria128/km²
Life Expectancyyears
Iraq72.4 years
Syria72.6 years
GDP per Capita
Iraq$5,410
Syria$1,057
Urban Population
Iraq69.9%
Syria72.1%

Bars compare magnitude only. A larger value is not a better one — several of these indicators have no better direction, and for others the lower figure is the favourable one.

Every Shared Indicator

35 indicators published for both countries. Bold marks the larger of the two values — larger is not always better. Ranks are out of the countries that report each indicator.

Every indicator published for both Iraq and Syria, side by side
IndicatorIraqSyriaIraq vs Syria
Population47,020,77434th of 24025,620,42757th of 2401.8× higher
Annual Growth Rate+2.10%46th of 240+3.77%6th of 24044% lower
Population Density/km²104/km²111th of 240128/km²94th of 24019% lower
Land Areakm²434,130 km²57th of 240183,630 km²89th of 2402.4× higher
Urban Population69.9%105th of 24072.1%95th of 2403% lower
GDP per Capita$5,410158th of 240$1,057224th of 2405.1× higher
GDP Growth−2.2%204th of 210−0.2%193rd of 2102.0 points apart
Life Expectancyyears72.4 years153rd of 24072.6 years151st of 2400% lower
Fertility Ratebirths per woman3.22 births per woman51st of 2402.70 births per woman69th of 24019% higher
Birth Rateper 1,00025.6 per 1,00048th of 21323.2 per 1,00058th of 21310% higher
Death Rateper 1,0004.2 per 1,000203rd of 2134.9 per 1,000191st of 21316% lower
Infant Mortalityper 1,000 live births20.1 per 1,000 live births126th of 19417.7 per 1,000 live births123rd of 19414% higher
Unemployment Rate15.5%172nd of 18613.6%167th of 18614% higher
Inflation Rate0.3%170th of 19113.4%18th of 19113.1 points apart
Poverty Rate17.5%62nd of 16435.2%120th of 16450% lower
Gini Index29.831st of 17026.49th of 17013% higher
Health Spendingof GDP5.5% of GDP116th of 1922.7% of GDP183rd of 1922.0× higher
Physiciansper 1,0001.02 per 1,000127th of 2061.52 per 1,000107th of 20633% lower
Hospital Bedsper 1,0001.06 per 1,000151st of 1991.43 per 1,000136th of 19926% lower
Literacy Rate84.1%120th of 17594.4%87th of 17511% lower
Education Spendingof GDP3.6% of GDP127th of 2025.1% of GDP62nd of 20231% lower
School Enrollmentgross, secondary50.6% gross, secondary174th of 20738.7% gross, secondary189th of 20731% higher
Renewable Energyof final consumption1.1% of final consumption186th of 2111.1% of final consumption186th of 211Equal
Forest Coverageof land area1.9% of land area185th of 2112.8% of land area182nd of 21133% lower
Internet Penetration81.5%104th of 21133.8%177th of 2112.4× higher
Mobile Subscriptionsper 100 people100.1 per 100 people137th of 21271.2 per 100 people175th of 21241% higher
Maternal Mortalityper 100,000 live births66 per 100,000 live births110th of 19320 per 100,000 live births73rd of 1933.3× higher
Military Spendingof GDP2.36% of GDP48th of 1634.06% of GDP19th of 16342% lower
Protected Areasof land area1.5% of land area201st of 2110.7% of land area204th of 2112.1× higher
Median Ageyears20.8 years192nd of 24023.3 years180th of 24011% lower
Mean Years of Schoolingyears8.3 years98th of 1487.9 years105th of 1484% higher
Human Development Index0.695125th of 1920.564161st of 19223% higher
Happiness Index/ 105.21/ 10101st of 1643.46/ 10158th of 16451% higher
CO₂ Emissionstonnes per capita5.07 tonnes per capita66th of 2121.29 tonnes per capita148th of 2123.9× higher
Obesity Rate36.8%32nd of 19829.9%69th of 19823% higher

Values are each country’s most recent published observation, so the two sides of a row may be from different years — the country pages show the year for each. Bold marks the larger of the two, which is not always the better one.

Population, 1950–2100

Observed to 2024, then the UN medium-variant projection.

IraqSyria
020M40M60M80M100M19501971199320142036205720792100projected →
Source: UN World Population Prospects 2024. Values from 2025 onward are projections, not observations.
Iraq and Syria population, 1950 to 2100
SeriesYearValue
Iraq19505.65M
Iraq197511.5M
Iraq200024.4M
Iraq202547M
Iraq205071.9M
Iraq207591.1M
Iraq2100100.6M
Syria19503.61M
Syria19757.55M
Syria200016.6M
Syria202525.6M
Syria205037.8M
Syria207543.6M
Syria210043.7M

Reading This Comparison

Size is not the same as rate

Totals and per-capita measures answer different questions. A country can have a far larger economy and a far lower GDP per capita at the same time — both facts are in the table.

Mind the vintages

Each value is the latest available for that country, which is not always the same year on both sides. For indicators that move slowly this rarely matters; for inflation or GDP growth it can.

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