Côte d'Ivoire vs Somalia

Somalia is 98% larger than Côte d'Ivoire. Côte d'Ivoire would fit into Somalia about 2.0 times.

Côte d'IvoireSomaliaCôte d'Ivoire moved onto Somalia · Equal-area projection
0.51×
Côte d'Ivoire is 0.51× the area of Somalia. Put the other way, Somalia is 1.98× the size of Côte d'Ivoire.
Côte d'IvoireSomalia
Area322,463 km²637,657 km²
Population32,711,54719,654,739
Density101 / km²31 / km²
CapitalYamoussoukroMogadishu
RegionWestern AfricaEastern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours53

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Côte d'Ivoire sits at about 8°N and is stretched to 1.02× its true area; Somalia at 5° N is stretched to 1.01×. 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 Côte d'Ivoire bigger than Somalia?
No. Côte d'Ivoire is 49% smaller than Somalia. Côte d'Ivoire covers 322,463 km² and Somalia covers 637,657 km².
How many times does Côte d'Ivoire fit into Somalia?
About 2.0 times: Somalia has 1.98× the area of Côte d'Ivoire.
Why do Côte d'Ivoire and Somalia look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Côte d'Ivoire is drawn about 1.02× its true area there and Somalia about 1.01×. 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, Côte d'Ivoire or Somalia?
Côte d'Ivoire: 32,711,547 people against 19,654,739. Density: Côte d'Ivoire 101 per km², Somalia 31 per km².