Algeria vs South Africa
Algeria is 95% larger than South Africa. South Africa would fit into Algeria about 2.0 times.
AlgeriaSouth AfricaAlgeria moved onto South Africa · Equal-area projection
1.95×
Algeria is 1.95× the area of South Africa.
| Algeria | South Africa | |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 2,381,741 km² | 1,221,037 km² |
| Population | 47,435,312 | 64,747,319 |
| Density | 20 / km² | 53 / km² |
| Capital | Algiers | Pretoria |
| Region | Northern Africa | Southern Africa |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Neighbours | 7 | 6 |
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Algeria sits at about 28°N and is stretched to 1.28× its true area; South Africa at 29° S is stretched to 1.31×. 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 Algeria bigger than South Africa?
- Yes. Algeria is 95% larger than South Africa. Algeria covers 2,381,741 km² and South Africa covers 1,221,037 km².
- How many times does South Africa fit into Algeria?
- About 2.0 times: Algeria has 1.95× the area of South Africa.
- Why do Algeria and South Africa look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Algeria is drawn about 1.28× its true area there and South Africa about 1.31×. 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, Algeria or South Africa?
- South Africa: 64,747,319 people against 47,435,312. Density: Algeria 20 per km², South Africa 53 per km².