Argentina vs South Africa

Argentina is 2.28 times larger than South Africa. South Africa would fit into Argentina about 2.3 times.

ArgentinaSouth AfricaArgentina moved onto South Africa · Equal-area projection
2.28×
Argentina is 2.28× the area of South Africa.
ArgentinaSouth Africa
Area2,780,400 km²1,221,037 km²
Population45,851,37864,747,319
Density16 / km²53 / km²
CapitalBuenos AiresPretoria
RegionSouth AmericaSouthern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours56

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Argentina sits at about 35°S and is stretched to 1.48× 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 Argentina bigger than South Africa?
Yes. Argentina is 2.28 times larger than South Africa. Argentina covers 2,780,400 km² and South Africa covers 1,221,037 km².
How many times does South Africa fit into Argentina?
About 2.3 times: Argentina has 2.28× the area of South Africa.
Why do Argentina and South Africa look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Argentina is drawn about 1.48× 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, Argentina or South Africa?
South Africa: 64,747,319 people against 45,851,378. Density: Argentina 16 per km², South Africa 53 per km².