Japan vs Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe is 3% larger than Japan.

JapanZimbabweJapan moved onto Zimbabwe · Equal-area projection
0.97×
Japan is 0.97× the area of Zimbabwe. Put the other way, Zimbabwe is 1.03× the size of Japan.
JapanZimbabwe
Area377,972 km²390,757 km²
Population123,366,73416,950,795
Density326 / km²43 / km²
CapitalTokyoHarare
RegionEastern AsiaEastern Africa
CoastlineHas a coastLandlocked
Neighbours04

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; Zimbabwe at 19° S is stretched to 1.12×. 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 Zimbabwe?
No. Japan is 3% smaller than Zimbabwe. Japan covers 377,972 km² and Zimbabwe covers 390,757 km².
How many times does Japan fit into Zimbabwe?
About 1.0 times: Zimbabwe has 1.03× the area of Japan.
Why do Japan and Zimbabwe 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 Zimbabwe about 1.12×. 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 Zimbabwe?
Japan: 123,366,734 people against 16,950,795. Density: Japan 326 per km², Zimbabwe 43 per km².