Costa Rica vs New Zealand
New Zealand is 5.24 times larger than Costa Rica. Costa Rica would fit into New Zealand about 5.2 times.
Costa RicaNew ZealandCosta Rica moved onto New Zealand · Equal-area projection
0.19×
Costa Rica is 0.19× the area of New Zealand. Put the other way, New Zealand is 5.24× the size of Costa Rica.
| Costa Rica | New Zealand | |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 51,180 km² | 268,021 km² |
| Population | 5,152,950 | 5,324,700 |
| Density | 101 / km² | 20 / km² |
| Capital | San Jose | Wellington |
| Region | Central America | Australia and New Zealand |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Neighbours | 2 | 0 |
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; New Zealand at 42° S is stretched to 1.79×. That difference is why New Zealand looks so much bigger than it is next to Costa Rica. 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 New Zealand?
- No. Costa Rica is 5.24 times smaller than New Zealand. Costa Rica covers 51,180 km² and New Zealand covers 268,021 km².
- How many times does Costa Rica fit into New Zealand?
- About 5.2 times: New Zealand has 5.24× the area of Costa Rica.
- Why do Costa Rica and New Zealand 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 New Zealand about 1.79×. That is why New Zealand looks so much bigger than it really is next to Costa Rica. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Costa Rica or New Zealand?
- New Zealand: 5,324,700 people against 5,152,950. Density: Costa Rica 101 per km², New Zealand 20 per km².