Brazil and Argentina – country comparison | Brazil vs Argentina

The following is a comparison between Brazil and Argentina, the two largest countries in South America. Let’s read.

Brazil and Argentina – country comparison

GDP

• Brazil has a much larger GDP than Argentina. In fact, Brazil has the largest economy in South America. However, Argentina has a higher GDP per capita. The following table compares the GDP and GDP per capita of Brazil and Argentina.

2025 (IMF)	Brazil	Argentina
Currency	Brazilian Real	Argentine Peso
GDP (nominal, USD)	$2.28 trillion	$681.49 billion
GDP per capita (nominal, USD)	$10.69 thousand	$14.35 thousand
GDP (PPP, international $)	$4.99 trillion	$1.49 trillion
GDP per capita (PPP, international $)	$23.38 thousand	$31.48 thousand

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Population

2025 estimate	Brazil	Argentina
Population	212.8 million	45.9 million
Population aged 0-14	19.2%	21%
Population aged 15-64	69.7%	66%
Population aged 65 and older	11.1%	13%
Total fertility rate, per woman	1.6	1.5

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Life

	Brazil	Argentina
Life expectancy at birth (2023/UN)	75.85	77.39
Human Development Index rank (2023)	84th	47th
Human Development Index value	0.786	0.865

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Overview

• Brazil is about three times larger than Argentina. It is the fifth-largest country in the world. Argentina is the eighth-largest country in the world.

• Brazil has a much larger population than Argentina. Both countries have relatively low overall population densities.

	Brazil	Argentina
Area	approximately 8.51 million sq km	approximately 2.78 million sq km
Population	212.8 million (2025 estimate)	45.9 million (2025 estimate)
Capital city	Brasília	Buenos Aires
Largest city	São Paulo	Buenos Aires
Most spoken language	Portuguese	Spanish
Most popular sport	Football (Soccer)	Football (Soccer)

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Geography

	Brazil	Argentina
Continent	South America	South America
Forest cover (2023)	59%	10.3%
Total number of time zones	4	1
Highest mountain peak	Pico da Neblina (2,995 m/9,826 ft)	Aconcagua (6,961 m/22,837 ft)
Major rivers	Amazon, Paraná, San Francisco, Araguaia, Tocantins, Paraguay, etc.	Paraná, Uruguay, Colorado, Salado, Bermejo, Pilcomayo, etc.
Area rank in the world	5th	8th
Area rank in South America	1st	2nd

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(Also read: USA vs Brazil | USA and Brazil – country comparison)

Tourism

	Brazil	Argentina
International tourist arrivals	6.8 million (2024)	6.6 million (2024)
Number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites	25	12
Popular places to visit	Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Manaus, Salvador, Brasília, Fortaleza, Florianópolis, etc.	Iguazu Falls, Buenos Aires, Iberá National Park, Salta, Bariloche, Mendoza, etc.