Iran vs Mauritania

Iran is 60% larger than Mauritania. Mauritania would fit into Iran about 1.6 times.

IranMauritaniaIran moved onto Mauritania · Equal-area projection
1.6×
Iran is 1.6× the area of Mauritania.
IranMauritania
Area1,648,195 km²1,030,700 km²
Population92,417,6815,315,065
Density56 / km²5.2 / km²
CapitalTehranNouakchott
RegionSouthern AsiaWestern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours74

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Iran sits at about 33°N and is stretched to 1.41× its true area; Mauritania at 20° N is stretched to 1.14×. 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 Iran bigger than Mauritania?
Yes. Iran is 60% larger than Mauritania. Iran covers 1,648,195 km² and Mauritania covers 1,030,700 km².
How many times does Mauritania fit into Iran?
About 1.6 times: Iran has 1.6× the area of Mauritania.
Why do Iran and Mauritania look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Iran is drawn about 1.41× its true area there and Mauritania about 1.14×. 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, Iran or Mauritania?
Iran: 92,417,681 people against 5,315,065. Density: Iran 56 per km², Mauritania 5.2 per km².