Benin vs Eritrea

Eritrea and Benin are almost exactly the same size.

BeninEritreaBenin moved onto Eritrea · Equal-area projection
0.98×
Benin is 0.98× the area of Eritrea. Put the other way, Eritrea is 1.02× the size of Benin.
BeninEritrea
Area114,763 km²117,600 km²
Population14,814,4603,607,003
Density129 / km²31 / km²
CapitalPorto-NovoAsmara
RegionWestern AfricaEastern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours43

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Benin sits at about 10°N and is stretched to 1.03× its true area; Eritrea at 15° N 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 Benin bigger than Eritrea?
No. Benin and Eritrea are almost exactly the same size. Benin covers 114,763 km² and Eritrea covers 117,600 km².
How many times does Benin fit into Eritrea?
About 1.0 times: Eritrea has 1.02× the area of Benin.
Why do Benin and Eritrea look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Benin is drawn about 1.03× its true area there and Eritrea 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, Benin or Eritrea?
Benin: 14,814,460 people against 3,607,003. Density: Benin 129 per km², Eritrea 31 per km².