Guinea vs Laos

Guinea is 4% larger than Laos.

GuineaLaosGuinea moved onto Laos · Equal-area projection
1.04×
Guinea is 1.04× the area of Laos.
GuineaLaos
Area245,857 km²236,800 km²
Population15,099,7277,873,046
Density61 / km²33 / km²
CapitalConakryVientiane
RegionWestern AfricaSouth-Eastern Asia
CoastlineHas a coastLandlocked
Neighbours65

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Guinea sits at about 10°N and is stretched to 1.03× 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 Guinea bigger than Laos?
Yes. Guinea is 4% larger than Laos. Guinea covers 245,857 km² and Laos covers 236,800 km².
How many times does Laos fit into Guinea?
About 1.0 times: Guinea has 1.04× the area of Laos.
Why do Guinea and Laos look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Guinea is drawn about 1.03× 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, Guinea or Laos?
Guinea: 15,099,727 people against 7,873,046. Density: Guinea 61 per km², Laos 33 per km².