Japan vs Mali

Mali is 3.28 times larger than Japan. Japan would fit into Mali about 3.3 times.

JapanMaliJapan moved onto Mali · Equal-area projection
0.3×
Japan is 0.3× the area of Mali. Put the other way, Mali is 3.28× the size of Japan.
JapanMali
Area377,972 km²1,240,192 km²
Population123,366,73425,198,821
Density326 / km²20 / km²
CapitalTokyoBamako
RegionEastern AsiaWestern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastLandlocked
Neighbours07

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Japan sits at about 37°N and is stretched to 1.59× its true area; Mali at 17° N is stretched to 1.1×. 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 Japan bigger than Mali?
No. Japan is 3.28 times smaller than Mali. Japan covers 377,972 km² and Mali covers 1,240,192 km².
How many times does Japan fit into Mali?
About 3.3 times: Mali has 3.28× the area of Japan.
Why do Japan and Mali look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Japan is drawn about 1.59× its true area there and Mali about 1.1×. 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, Japan or Mali?
Japan: 123,366,734 people against 25,198,821. Density: Japan 326 per km², Mali 20 per km².