Chagos Islands vs Nauru
Chagos Islands is 2.86 times larger than Nauru. Nauru would fit into Chagos Islands about 2.9 times.
Chagos IslandsNauruChagos Islands moved onto Nauru · Equal-area projection
2.86×
Chagos Islands is 2.86× the area of Nauru.
 Chagos Islands |  Nauru | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaChagos Islands: 2.86× the area | 60 km² | 21 km²#192 of 194 |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationNauru: 4.01× the population | 3,0002018 | 12,025#193 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityNauru: 11.5× the density | 50 / km² | 573 / km²#11 of 194 |
| Urban population | — | 100%#1 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rate | — | 3.29 per woman#47 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growth | — | +0.65%#116 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rate | — | 24.6 per 1,000#52 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rate | — | 7.6 per 1,000#83 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15 | — | 37.2%#39 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65 | — | 3.0%#171 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migration | — | −10.1 per 1,000#183 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroad | — | 0.42 per 1,000#77 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancy | — | 62.3 years#177 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortality | — | 7.7 per 1,000 births#126 of 191 · 2024 |
| Human Development Index | — | 0.703#123 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | — | $20,690#52 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDP | — | $176M2025 |
| Income group | — | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | — | $14,200#112 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growth | — | +2.1%#127 of 187 · 2025 |
| Foreign investment | — | 0.0% of GDP#162 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | — | 61.8% of GDP#33 of 168 · 2025 |
| Internet users | — | 83%#86 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptions | — | 87 per 100#145 of 191 · 2022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest area | — | 0% of land#189 of 192 · 2023 |
| CO₂ per person | — | 0.00 t a year#183 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energy | — | 1.9%#168 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricity | — | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5) | — | 4.8 µg/m³#185 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected land | — | 0.0% of land#188 of 191 · 2025 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stability | — | +1.22#19 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruption | — | +0.46#63 of 193 · 2025 |
| State | ||
| Status | Territory of United Kingdom | Independent state |
| Government | Dependent territory | Parliamentary republic |
| Capital | Diego Garcia | Yaren District |
| Currency | United States dollar (USD), Pound sterling (GBP) | Australian dollar (AUD) |
| Official languages | English | English, Nauruan |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+6 | UTC+12 |
| Calling code | +246 | +674 |
| Region | Seven seas (open ocean) | Micronesia, Oceania |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Chagos Islands sits at about 7° S and is stretched to 1.02× its true area; Nauru at 1° S is stretched to 1.0×. 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 Chagos Islands bigger than Nauru?
- Yes. Chagos Islands is 2.86 times larger than Nauru. Chagos Islands covers 60 km² and Nauru covers 21 km².
- How many times does Nauru fit into Chagos Islands?
- About 2.9 times: Chagos Islands has 2.86× the area of Nauru.
- Why do Chagos Islands and Nauru look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Chagos Islands is drawn about 1.02× its true area there and Nauru about 1.0×. 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, Chagos Islands or Nauru?
- Nauru: 12,025 people against 3,000. Density: Chagos Islands 50 per km², Nauru 573 per km².
- What kind of government do Chagos Islands and Nauru have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Chagos Islands: dependent territory; Nauru: parliamentary republic.