Fiji vs New Caledonia

New Caledonia and Fiji are almost exactly the same size.

FijiNew CaledoniaFiji moved onto New Caledonia · Equal-area projection
0.98×
Fiji is 0.98× the area of New Caledonia. Put the other way, New Caledonia is 1.02× the size of Fiji.
FijiNew Caledonia
Area18,274 km²18,576 km²
Population933,154295,333
Density51 / km²16 / km²
CapitalSuvaNoum'ea
RegionMelanesiaMelanesia
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours00

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Fiji sits at about 17°S and is stretched to 1.1× its true area; New Caledonia at 21° S is stretched to 1.15×. 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 Fiji bigger than New Caledonia?
No. Fiji and New Caledonia are almost exactly the same size. Fiji covers 18,274 km² and New Caledonia covers 18,576 km².
How many times does Fiji fit into New Caledonia?
About 1.0 times: New Caledonia has 1.02× the area of Fiji.
Why do Fiji and New Caledonia look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Fiji is drawn about 1.1× its true area there and New Caledonia about 1.15×. 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, Fiji or New Caledonia?
Fiji: 933,154 people against 295,333. Density: Fiji 51 per km², New Caledonia 16 per km².