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Samoa: capital, population, area and flag

Samoa is a country in Polynesia (Oceania). Its capital is Apia. The population is about 219K (#175 of 193) and the area is about 2,840 km² (#166 of 193).

Key facts

Capital
Apia
Region
Oceania / Polynesia
Population
219,306 (2025) #175 of 193
Total area
2,840 km² (2024) #166 of 193
Population density
78.4 people/km² (2024) #106 of 193
GDP (total)
$1.29B (2025) #178 of 189
GDP per capita
$5,873 (2025) #111 of 189
Life expectancy
71.8 years (2024) #117 of 193
Distance from Japan
7,501 km #154 of 192
Area compared with Japan
about 1/130 that of Japan
Population compared with Japan
about 1/560 that of Japan
Main languages
Samoan, English
Currency
Samoan Tala (WST)
Calling code
+685
Time zone (capital)
UTC+13
Time difference from Japan (standard time)
4 h ahead of Japan
Driving side
Left
Capital location
13.83°S 171.83°W

Population of Samoa, 1950–2100 (Japanese)
See past estimates, future projections and the population pyramid in the World Population Time Machine.

Map of Samoa

Map of Samoa

Capital: Apia

Neighbors by land

Samoa has no land borders with other countries.

Top rankings

Samoa is in the top 10 for:

Samoa in world rankings

How Samoa compares with other countries, indicator by indicator. Click an indicator to see the full ranking.

IndicatorValueYearRank
Geography & nature
Total area2,840 km²2024#166 of 193
Number of land borders0#155 of 193 tied
Latitude of the capital-13.8°#171 of 193
Distance from Japan7,501 km#154 of 192
Forest area (share of land)57.6%2024#35 of 193
Arable land (share of land)4.1%2024#139 of 190
Protected land (share of land)7.9%2025#153 of 192 tied
Agricultural land (share of land)17.8%2024#151 of 192
Average annual rainfall2,880 mm2022#7 of 180
Forest area1,598 km²2025#155 of 193
Marine protected areas (share of territorial waters)0.2%2025#120 of 153 tied
People & population
Population219,3062025#175 of 193
Population density78.4 people/km²2024#106 of 193
Population growth rate0.59%2025#121 of 193
Urban population (share of people)17.5%2025#191 of 193
Life expectancy71.8 years2024#117 of 193
Fertility rate3.80 births per woman2024#31 of 193
Infant mortality rate12.3 per 1,000 births2024#98 of 192 tied
Birth rate25.0 per 1,000 people2024#51 of 193
Share of people aged 65 and over6.1%2025#114 of 193
Share of children aged 0–1438.1%2025#32 of 193
Life expectancy of women73.8 years2024#125 of 193
Life expectancy of men70.0 years2024#104 of 193
Maternal mortality ratio101 per 100,000 births2023#65 of 192
Death rate (per 1,000 people)6.2 per 1,000 people2024#137 of 193
Under-5 mortality (per 1,000 births)14.9 per 1,000 births2024#98 of 192
Population aged 15–64 (share of population)55.9%2025#178 of 193
Economy
GDP (total)$1.29B2025#178 of 189
GDP per capita$5,8732025#111 of 189
GDP per capita (PPP)$9,3192025#129 of 185
Economic growth rate4.2%2025#67 of 188
Inflation rate2.2%2025#116 of 179
Unemployment rate5.0%2025#95 of 178
Exports (share of GDP)27.6%2025#107 of 168
Imports (share of GDP)43.0%2025#81 of 168
Agriculture (share of GDP)9.1%2025#72 of 184
Industry (share of GDP)10.2%2025#176 of 185
Services (share of GDP)72.1%2025#16 of 185
Goods exports (total)$24M2025#185 of 190 tied
Money sent home by workers abroad (share of GDP)22.4%2025#10 of 170
Women in the labor force (share of women)30.7%2025#158 of 178
Youth unemployment rate13.0%2025#86 of 178 tied
Fish and seafood production (catch + farmed)8,107 t2024#156 of 193
Fish catch (from sea, rivers and lakes)8,094 t2024#142 of 193
Aquaculture (farmed fish and seafood)13 t2024#166 of 193
Livestock production growth (2014–16 = 100)75.6 (2014–16 average = 100)2024#181 of 187
Fertilizer use (per hectare of arable land)1 kg/ha2024#182 of 187
Manufacturing (share of GDP)4.9%2025#151 of 178
Employment in agriculture (share of jobs)26.9%2025#70 of 178
High-technology exports (share of manufactured exports)76.7%2024#1 of 168
Foreign direct investment, inflows (share of GDP)0.2%2025#158 of 187
Development aid received (share of national income)11.3%2023#21 of 132
Labor force (number of people)57,7762025#175 of 178
Reserves of foreign currency and gold$598M2025#148 of 169
Daily life & technology
Mobile phone subscriptions62.4 per 100 people2022#174 of 193
Access to electricity (share of people)100.0%2024#1 of 193 tied
Health spending (share of GDP)6.8%2023#90 of 192
Education spending (share of GDP)5.5%2024#36 of 179
Doctors0.56 per 1,000 people2021#131 of 188
Women in parliament (share of seats)9.8%2025#169 of 192 tied
University and college enrollment16.0%2024#130 of 163
Fixed broadband subscriptions0.9 per 100 people2022#155 of 192
Air passengers carried42,1202023#140 of 152
Safe drinking water (share of people)62.5%2024#87 of 136
Safe sanitation (share of people)44.1%2024#87 of 136
Undernourishment (share of people)3.4%2024#96 of 165 tied
Clean cooking fuels (share of people)65.0%2024#125 of 192 tied
Road traffic deaths13.0 per 100,000 people2019#106 of 183 tied
Measles vaccination (share of children)85.0%2024#124 of 192 tied
Secondary school enrollment (gross)87.4%2016#110 of 180
Primary school completion rate100.0%2024#34 of 172
Nurses and midwives (per 1,000 people)3.06 per 1,000 people2020#109 of 190
Tuberculosis cases (per 100,000 people)6 per 100,000 people2024#159 of 191 tied
Health spending per person$2932023#115 of 192
Container port traffic (TEU)53,017 TEU2024#129 of 150
Environment
Renewable electricity (share of power)49.1%2021#62 of 187
CO₂ emissions per person1.6 t CO₂e per person2024#113 of 186
CO₂ emissions (total)0.3 Mt CO₂e2024#170 of 186
Air pollution (PM2.5)4.6 µg/m³2023#188 of 192
Renewable energy (share of final energy use)35.9%2022#67 of 191
Electricity from nuclear power (share of total)0.0%2021#33 of 190 tied
Electricity from hydropower (share of total)28.8%2021#67 of 190
Greenhouse gas emissions (total)0.5 Mt CO₂e2024#173 of 186
Food & farming
Cassava: production469 t2024#81 of 92
Yams: production78 t2024#53 of 56
Coconuts: production64,661 t2024#34 of 79
Bananas: production21,853 t2024#76 of 113
Mangoes (with guavas and mangosteens): production4,292 t2024#68 of 96
Pineapples: production4,646 t2024#59 of 82
Avocados: production1,443 t2024#54 of 70
Papayas: production3,294 t2024#45 of 68
Coffee: production12 t2024#72 of 74
Cocoa beans: production483 t2024#40 of 58
Sugar cane: production12 t2024#92 of 93
Tobacco: production252 t2024#100 of 117
Black pepper (Piper spp.): production11 t2024#43 of 45
Beef (cattle meat): production1,293 t2024#155 of 181
Pork (pig meat): production1,384 t2024#132 of 164
Chicken meat: production382 t2024#173 of 183
Cow’s milk: production1,579 t2024#169 of 178
Hen eggs: production387 t2024#159 of 167
Honey: production180 t2024#109 of 122
Nile tilapia: production5 t2024#75 of 79 tied
Skipjack tuna: production15 t2024#68 of 82
Yellowfin tuna: production126 t2024#68 of 82
Bigeye tuna: production34 t2024#55 of 68
Albacore: production389 t2024#27 of 60
Swordfish: production1 t2024#72 of 76
Seaweeds and other aquatic plants: production16 t2024#58 of 68
Clams and cockles: production0 t2023#51 of 55
Tunas, bonitos and billfishes: production585 t2024#98 of 133
Tilapias and other cichlids: production5 t2024#107 of 119 tied
Sea urchins, sea cucumbers and other echinoderms: production5 t2024#38 of 48 tied
Sharks and rays: production0 t2024#126 of 127
Cattle: number of animals38,349 animals2024#160 of 183
Pigs: number of animals91,647 animals2024#113 of 165
Chickens: number of animals438,000 birds2024#165 of 181
Horses: number of animals1,954 animals2024#122 of 143
Donkeys: number of animals7,000 animals2024#73 of 104

Questions about Samoa

What is the capital of Samoa?

The capital of Samoa is Apia.

What is the population of Samoa?

Samoa has a population of about 219K (2025), #175 of 193 among countries.

How big is Samoa?

Samoa covers about 2,840 km², #166 of 193 among countries.

Which continent is Samoa in?

Samoa is in Oceania, in the region of Polynesia.

What currency and languages are used in Samoa?

The currency is the Samoan Tala. Main languages: Samoan, English.

How does Samoa compare with Japan in size and population?

The area of Samoa is about 1/130 that of Japan, and its population is about 1/560 that of Japan.

How far is Samoa from Japan?

The capital, Apia, is about 7,501 km from Tokyo, the capital of Japan, in a straight line.

What is the time difference between Samoa and Japan?

The capital, Apia, is on UTC+13 in standard time: 4 h ahead of Japan.

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