British Virgin Islands vs Chagos Islands

British Virgin Islands is 2.52 times larger than Chagos Islands. Chagos Islands would fit into British Virgin Islands about 2.5 times.

British Virgin IslandsChagos IslandsBritish Virgin Islands moved onto Chagos Islands · Equal-area projection
2.52×
British Virgin Islands is 2.52× the area of Chagos Islands.
British Virgin IslandsChagos Islands
Area151 km²60 km²
Population39,7323,000
Density263 / km²50 / km²
CapitalRoad TownDiego Garcia
RegionCaribbeanSeven seas (open ocean)
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours00

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. British Virgin Islands sits at about 19°N and is stretched to 1.11× its true area; Chagos Islands at 7° S is stretched to 1.02×. 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 British Virgin Islands bigger than Chagos Islands?
Yes. British Virgin Islands is 2.52 times larger than Chagos Islands. British Virgin Islands covers 151 km² and Chagos Islands covers 60 km².
How many times does Chagos Islands fit into British Virgin Islands?
About 2.5 times: British Virgin Islands has 2.52× the area of Chagos Islands.
Why do British Virgin Islands and Chagos Islands look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. British Virgin Islands is drawn about 1.11× its true area there and Chagos Islands about 1.02×. 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, British Virgin Islands or Chagos Islands?
British Virgin Islands: 39,732 people against 3,000. Density: British Virgin Islands 263 per km², Chagos Islands 50 per km².