Costa Rica vs Laos
Laos is 4.63 times larger than Costa Rica. Costa Rica would fit into Laos about 4.6 times.
Costa RicaLaosCosta Rica moved onto Laos · Equal-area projection
0.22×
Costa Rica is 0.22× the area of Laos. Put the other way, Laos is 4.63× the size of Costa Rica.
| Costa Rica | Laos | |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 51,180 km² | 236,800 km² |
| Population | 5,152,950 | 7,873,046 |
| Density | 101 / km² | 33 / km² |
| Capital | San Jose | Vientiane |
| Region | Central America | South-Eastern Asia |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Landlocked |
| Neighbours | 2 | 5 |
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Costa Rica sits at about 10°N and is stretched to 1.03× its true area; Laos at 18° N is stretched to 1.11×. 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 Costa Rica bigger than Laos?
- No. Costa Rica is 4.63 times smaller than Laos. Costa Rica covers 51,180 km² and Laos covers 236,800 km².
- How many times does Costa Rica fit into Laos?
- About 4.6 times: Laos has 4.63× the area of Costa Rica.
- Why do Costa Rica and Laos look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Costa Rica is drawn about 1.03× its true area there and Laos about 1.11×. 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, Costa Rica or Laos?
- Laos: 7,873,046 people against 5,152,950. Density: Costa Rica 101 per km², Laos 33 per km².