Gabon vs New Caledonia

Gabon is 14.4 times larger than New Caledonia. New Caledonia would fit into Gabon about 14 times.

GabonNew CaledoniaGabon moved onto New Caledonia · Equal-area projection
14.4×
Gabon is 14.4× the area of New Caledonia.
GabonNew Caledonia
Area267,667 km²18,576 km²
Population2,593,130295,333
Density9.7 / km²16 / km²
CapitalLibrevilleNoum'ea
RegionMiddle AfricaMelanesia
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours30

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Gabon sits at about 1°S and is stretched to 1.0× 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 Gabon bigger than New Caledonia?
Yes. Gabon is 14.4 times larger than New Caledonia. Gabon covers 267,667 km² and New Caledonia covers 18,576 km².
How many times does New Caledonia fit into Gabon?
About 14 times: Gabon has 14.4× the area of New Caledonia.
Why do Gabon and New Caledonia look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Gabon is drawn about 1.0× 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, Gabon or New Caledonia?
Gabon: 2,593,130 people against 295,333. Density: Gabon 9.7 per km², New Caledonia 16 per km².