Costa Rica vs Niger

Niger is 24.8 times larger than Costa Rica. Costa Rica would fit into Niger about 25 times.

Costa RicaNigerCosta Rica moved onto Niger · Equal-area projection
0.04×
Costa Rica is 0.04× the area of Niger. Put the other way, Niger is 24.8× the size of Costa Rica.
Costa RicaNiger
Area51,180 km²1,267,000 km²
Population5,152,95027,917,831
Density101 / km²22 / km²
CapitalSan JoseNiamey
RegionCentral AmericaWestern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastLandlocked
Neighbours27

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; Niger at 17° N is stretched to 1.1×. 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 Niger?
No. Costa Rica is 24.8 times smaller than Niger. Costa Rica covers 51,180 km² and Niger covers 1,267,000 km².
How many times does Costa Rica fit into Niger?
About 25 times: Niger has 24.8× the area of Costa Rica.
Why do Costa Rica and Niger 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 Niger about 1.1×. 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 Niger?
Niger: 27,917,831 people against 5,152,950. Density: Costa Rica 101 per km², Niger 22 per km².