Bulgaria vs Chagos Islands

Bulgaria is 1,850 times larger than Chagos Islands. Chagos Islands would fit into Bulgaria about 1850 times.

BulgariaChagos IslandsBulgaria moved onto Chagos Islands · Equal-area projection
1,850×
Bulgaria is 1,850× the area of Chagos Islands.
BulgariaChagos Islands
Area110,994 km²60 km²
Population6,433,3023,000
Density58 / km²50 / km²
CapitalSofiaDiego Garcia
RegionEastern EuropeSeven seas (open ocean)
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours50

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Bulgaria sits at about 43°N and is stretched to 1.86× its true area; Chagos Islands at 7° S is stretched to 1.02×. That difference is why Bulgaria looks so much bigger than it is next to Chagos Islands. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.

Questions about this pair

Is Bulgaria bigger than Chagos Islands?
Yes. Bulgaria is 1,850 times larger than Chagos Islands. Bulgaria covers 110,994 km² and Chagos Islands covers 60 km².
How many times does Chagos Islands fit into Bulgaria?
About 1850 times: Bulgaria has 1,850× the area of Chagos Islands.
Why do Bulgaria and Chagos Islands look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Bulgaria is drawn about 1.86× its true area there and Chagos Islands about 1.02×. That is why Bulgaria looks so much bigger than it really is next to Chagos Islands. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Which has more people, Bulgaria or Chagos Islands?
Bulgaria: 6,433,302 people against 3,000. Density: Bulgaria 58 per km², Chagos Islands 50 per km².