Mauritania vs New Zealand
New Zealand has about the same population as Mauritania: 5,324,700 vs 5,315,065, a gap of 9,635. Mauritania is growing faster (+2.78% vs +0.65% a year), adding about 147,703 people a year against +34,814. Using continuous exponential growth from the stated base year, if these rates held, Mauritania would overtake New Zealand in about 0 years (from the 2025 population bases, around 2025) — a projection, not a forecast. New Zealand is the older society: 17.6% aged 65+ against 3.2% in Mauritania, while Mauritania has more children (42.4% under 15 vs 17.9%). New Zealand is 4.1× as densely populated (19.7 vs 4.9 people per km²). People in New Zealand live 13.3 years longer on average (82.0 vs 68.7). GDP per capita is 22.6× higher in New Zealand ($49,591 vs $2,198).
Country/territory population bases: World Bank 2025 (Mauritania) and 2025 (New Zealand); growth years 2025 / 2025. Annual source values, not live counts; years may differ. Growth is national, not local.
Mauritania vs New Zealand — side by side
 Mauritania |  New Zealand | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 5,315,0652025 | 5,324,7002025 |
| Growth rate / yr | +2.78%2025 | +0.65%2025 |
| Births per 1,000 | 34.02024 | 11.02024 |
| Deaths per 1,000 | 5.42024 | 7.12024 |
| Children per woman | 4.622024 | 1.572024 |
| Life expectancy | 68.7 yrs2024 | 82.0 yrs2024 |
| Aged 0–14 | 42.4%2025 | 17.9%2025 |
| Aged 65+ | 3.2%2025 | 17.6%2025 |
| Density | 4.9 /km²2023 | 19.7 /km²2023 |
| Area | 1,030,700 km²2023 | 267,710 km²2023 |
| Urban population | 61.5%2025 | 84.0%2025 |
| Net migration / yr | -5,0442025 | +17,4032025 |
| GDP per capita | $2,1982025 | $49,5912025 |
| Country population rank (available records) | #125 | #124 |
| Base / world population (World Bank 2025) | 0.06% | 0.06% |
Highlighted cell = the higher value (not "better"). Small print under each value is its own data year. Source: World Bank; country/territory population bases may have different years. These are not live counts.
Population since 1960
World Bank population history (not the separate UN WPP timeline). Mauritania: 6.4× from 1960 to 2025; New Zealand: 2.2× from 1960 to 2025. Left: absolute population. Right: each series indexed to its own first available year = 100; baseline years may differ.
More comparisons
Regions: Sub-Saharan Africa · East Asia & Pacific · rankings
Mauritania: Mauritania vs Slovakia, Mauritania vs Palestine, Mauritania vs New Zealand, Mauritania vs Costa Rica, Mauritania vs Kuwait, Mauritania vs Panama.
New Zealand: New Zealand vs Ireland, New Zealand vs Slovakia, New Zealand vs Palestine, New Zealand vs Mauritania, New Zealand vs Costa Rica, New Zealand vs Kuwait.
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This page is a structured reference entry. Its sources, geographic definition and reference dates determine what the figures mean; it is not independent reporting about the causes of change. Read the accompanying explanation before comparing different places or vintages.