Colombia vs Japan

Colombia is 3.02 times larger than Japan. Japan would fit into Colombia about 3.0 times.

ColombiaJapanColombia moved onto Japan · Equal-area projection
3.02×
Colombia is 3.02× the area of Japan.
ColombiaJapan
Area1,141,748 km²377,972 km²
Population53,425,635123,366,734
Density47 / km²326 / km²
CapitalBogotaTokyo
RegionSouth AmericaEastern Asia
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. Colombia sits at about 4°N and is stretched to 1.0× its true area; Japan at 37° N is stretched to 1.59×. That difference is why Japan looks so much bigger than it is next to Colombia. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.

Questions about this pair

Is Colombia bigger than Japan?
Yes. Colombia is 3.02 times larger than Japan. Colombia covers 1,141,748 km² and Japan covers 377,972 km².
How many times does Japan fit into Colombia?
About 3.0 times: Colombia has 3.02× the area of Japan.
Why do Colombia and Japan look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Colombia is drawn about 1.0× its true area there and Japan about 1.59×. That is why Japan looks so much bigger than it really is next to Colombia. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Which has more people, Colombia or Japan?
Japan: 123,366,734 people against 53,425,635. Density: Colombia 47 per km², Japan 326 per km².