Iraq vs Mauritania

Mauritania is 2.36 times larger than Iraq. Iraq would fit into Mauritania about 2.4 times.

IraqMauritaniaIraq moved onto Mauritania · Equal-area projection
0.42×
Iraq is 0.42× the area of Mauritania. Put the other way, Mauritania is 2.36× the size of Iraq.
IraqMauritania
Area437,072 km²1,030,700 km²
Population47,020,7745,315,065
Density108 / km²5.2 / km²
CapitalBaghdadNouakchott
RegionWestern AsiaWestern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours64

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Iraq sits at about 33°N and is stretched to 1.42× 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 Iraq bigger than Mauritania?
No. Iraq is 2.36 times smaller than Mauritania. Iraq covers 437,072 km² and Mauritania covers 1,030,700 km².
How many times does Iraq fit into Mauritania?
About 2.4 times: Mauritania has 2.36× the area of Iraq.
Why do Iraq and Mauritania look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Iraq is drawn about 1.42× 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, Iraq or Mauritania?
Iraq: 47,020,774 people against 5,315,065. Density: Iraq 108 per km², Mauritania 5.2 per km².