Algeria vs Western Sahara
Algeria is 8.95 times larger than Western Sahara. Western Sahara would fit into Algeria about 9.0 times.
AlgeriaWestern SaharaAlgeria moved onto Western Sahara · Equal-area projection
8.95×
Algeria is 8.95× the area of Western Sahara.
| Algeria | Western Sahara | |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 2,381,741 km² | 266,000 km² |
| Population | 47,435,312 | 612,000 |
| Density | 20 / km² | 2.3 / km² |
| Capital | Algiers | — |
| Region | Northern Africa | Northern Africa |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Neighbours | 7 | 3 |
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; Western Sahara at 24° N is stretched to 1.2×. 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 Western Sahara?
- Yes. Algeria is 8.95 times larger than Western Sahara. Algeria covers 2,381,741 km² and Western Sahara covers 266,000 km².
- How many times does Western Sahara fit into Algeria?
- About 9.0 times: Algeria has 8.95× the area of Western Sahara.
- Why do Algeria and Western Sahara 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 Western Sahara about 1.2×. 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 Western Sahara?
- Algeria: 47,435,312 people against 612,000. Density: Algeria 20 per km², Western Sahara 2.3 per km².