Indonesia vs Malawi

Indonesia is 16.1 times larger than Malawi. Malawi would fit into Indonesia about 16 times.

IndonesiaMalawiIndonesia moved onto Malawi · Equal-area projection
16.1×
Indonesia is 16.1× the area of Malawi.
IndonesiaMalawi
Area1,904,570 km²118,484 km²
Population285,721,23622,216,120
Density150 / km²188 / km²
CapitalJakartaLilongwe
RegionSouth-Eastern AsiaEastern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastLandlocked
Neighbours33

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Indonesia sits at about 2°S and is stretched to 1.0× its true area; Malawi at 13° S is stretched to 1.06×. 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 Indonesia bigger than Malawi?
Yes. Indonesia is 16.1 times larger than Malawi. Indonesia covers 1,904,570 km² and Malawi covers 118,484 km².
How many times does Malawi fit into Indonesia?
About 16 times: Indonesia has 16.1× the area of Malawi.
Why do Indonesia and Malawi look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Indonesia is drawn about 1.0× its true area there and Malawi about 1.06×. 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, Indonesia or Malawi?
Indonesia: 285,721,236 people against 22,216,120. Density: Indonesia 150 per km², Malawi 188 per km².