Countries of Southern Africa
We count 5 countries in Southern Africa, part of Africa.
Together they have about 74.9 million inhabitants, 0.91% of the population of all 195 countries, on 2,675,714 km².
The largest country is South Africa, the smallest Eswatini.
The most populous country is South Africa, the least populous Eswatini.
Botswana has the highest GDP per person, Lesotho the lowest.
Namibia has the youngest population (median age 21.5 years), South Africa the oldest (28.9 years).
All 5 countries of Southern Africa
Sorted by population. Every country links to its own page.
| Country | Capital | Population | Areakm² |
|---|---|---|---|
 South Africa | Pretoria | 65.5M | 1,221,037 |
 Namibia | Windhoek | 3.2M | 825,229 |
 Botswana | Gaborone | 2.6M | 581,730 |
 Lesotho | Maseru | 2.4M | 30,355 |
 Eswatini | Mbabane | 1.3M | 17,363 |
Test yourself
Questions about the countries of Southern Africa
How many countries are there in Southern Africa?
We count 5 countries in Southern Africa: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia, and South Africa.
What is the largest country in Southern Africa?
The largest country in Southern Africa is South Africa, with 1,221,037 km².
What is the smallest country in Southern Africa?
The smallest country in Southern Africa is Eswatini, with 17,363 km².
Which country in Southern Africa has the most inhabitants?
The most populous country in Southern Africa is South Africa, with about 65.5 million inhabitants.
Each country is counted on one continent only, following Natural Earth: Russia, for example, is counted in Europe and Turkey in Asia. Regions are Natural Earth's subregions, which follow the UN's M49 standard. Capital, region, borders and country code: Natural Earth, capitals checked by hand. Flag: flag-icons. How we check our data →