Guatemala vs Laos

Laos is 2.17 times larger than Guatemala. Guatemala would fit into Laos about 2.2 times.

GuatemalaLaosGuatemala moved onto Laos · Equal-area projection
0.46×
Guatemala is 0.46× the area of Laos. Put the other way, Laos is 2.17× the size of Guatemala.
GuatemalaLaos
Area108,889 km²236,800 km²
Population18,687,8817,873,046
Density172 / km²33 / km²
CapitalGuatemala CityVientiane
RegionCentral AmericaSouth-Eastern Asia
CoastlineHas a coastLandlocked
Neighbours45

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Guatemala sits at about 16°N and is stretched to 1.08× its true area; Laos at 18° N is stretched to 1.11×. 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 Guatemala bigger than Laos?
No. Guatemala is 2.17 times smaller than Laos. Guatemala covers 108,889 km² and Laos covers 236,800 km².
How many times does Guatemala fit into Laos?
About 2.2 times: Laos has 2.17× the area of Guatemala.
Why do Guatemala and Laos look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Guatemala is drawn about 1.08× its true area there and Laos about 1.11×. 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, Guatemala or Laos?
Guatemala: 18,687,881 people against 7,873,046. Density: Guatemala 172 per km², Laos 33 per km².