China vs Western Sahara
China is 36.1 times larger than Western Sahara. Western Sahara would fit into China about 36 times.
ChinaWestern SaharaChina moved onto Western Sahara · Equal-area projection
36.1×
China is 36.1× the area of Western Sahara.
| China | Western Sahara | |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 9,596,961 km² | 266,000 km² |
| Population | 1,406,585,000 | 612,000 |
| Density | 147 / km² | 2.3 / km² |
| Capital | Beijing | — |
| Region | Eastern Asia | Northern Africa |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Neighbours | 17 | 3 |
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. China sits at about 37°N and is stretched to 1.56× its true area; Western Sahara at 24° N is stretched to 1.2×. 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 China bigger than Western Sahara?
- Yes. China is 36.1 times larger than Western Sahara. China covers 9,596,961 km² and Western Sahara covers 266,000 km².
- How many times does Western Sahara fit into China?
- About 36 times: China has 36.1× the area of Western Sahara.
- Why do China and Western Sahara look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. China is drawn about 1.56× its true area there and Western Sahara about 1.2×. 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, China or Western Sahara?
- China: 1,406,585,000 people against 612,000. Density: China 147 per km², Western Sahara 2.3 per km².