Afghanistan vs Vanuatu

Afghanistan is 53.5 times larger than Vanuatu. Vanuatu would fit into Afghanistan about 54 times.

AfghanistanVanuatuAfghanistan moved onto Vanuatu · Equal-area projection
53.5×
Afghanistan is 53.5× the area of Vanuatu.
AfghanistanVanuatu
Area652,230 km²12,190 km²
Population43,844,111335,169
Density67 / km²27 / km²
CapitalKabulPort-Vila
RegionSouthern AsiaMelanesia
CoastlineLandlockedHas a coast
Neighbours60

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Afghanistan sits at about 34°N and is stretched to 1.45× its true area; Vanuatu at 16° S is stretched to 1.08×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.

Questions about this pair

Is Afghanistan bigger than Vanuatu?
Yes. Afghanistan is 53.5 times larger than Vanuatu. Afghanistan covers 652,230 km² and Vanuatu covers 12,190 km².
How many times does Vanuatu fit into Afghanistan?
About 54 times: Afghanistan has 53.5× the area of Vanuatu.
Why do Afghanistan and Vanuatu look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Afghanistan is drawn about 1.45× its true area there and Vanuatu about 1.08×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Which has more people, Afghanistan or Vanuatu?
Afghanistan: 43,844,111 people against 335,169. Density: Afghanistan 67 per km², Vanuatu 27 per km².