Where Data Tells the Story
© Voronoi 2026. All rights reserved.
How does Iran compare to its neighboring Middle Eastern countries across key national metrics?
This infographic benchmarks Iran against nearby countries Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates across 8 key categories.
Iran stands out for having the largest population and the most active military personnel in the group. It also ranks second to Saudi Arabia in geographic size, oil production, and proven oil reserves—placing it among the region’s foundational energy powers.
However, that scale does not fully translate into economic output at the individual level. Iran’s GDP per capita ranks near the bottom, ahead of only Syria, highlighting a significant gap between national capacity and average personal wealth compared to smaller, high-income Gulf states like Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
Notes: There was no data for Lebanon in the categories of oil production and oil reserves. Syria had no data for active military personnel. The military expenditure for the UAE is from 2014.
Data years:
Population: 2026
Geographic area: 2026
GDP: 2025
GDP per capita: 2025
Oil production: 2024
Oil reserves: 2025
Active military personnel: 2026
Annual military expenditure: 2024