Libya vs Papua New Guinea

Libya is 3.8 times larger than Papua New Guinea. Papua New Guinea would fit into Libya about 3.8 times.

LibyaPapua New GuineaLibya moved onto Papua New Guinea · Equal-area projection
3.8×
Libya is 3.8× the area of Papua New Guinea.
LibyaPapua New Guinea
Area1,759,541 km²462,840 km²
Population7,458,55510,762,817
Density4.2 / km²23 / km²
CapitalTripoliPort Moresby
RegionNorthern AfricaMelanesia
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours61

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Libya sits at about 27°N and is stretched to 1.26× its true area; Papua New Guinea at 6° S is stretched to 1.01×. 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 Libya bigger than Papua New Guinea?
Yes. Libya is 3.8 times larger than Papua New Guinea. Libya covers 1,759,541 km² and Papua New Guinea covers 462,840 km².
How many times does Papua New Guinea fit into Libya?
About 3.8 times: Libya has 3.8× the area of Papua New Guinea.
Why do Libya and Papua New Guinea look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Libya is drawn about 1.26× its true area there and Papua New Guinea about 1.01×. 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, Libya or Papua New Guinea?
Papua New Guinea: 10,762,817 people against 7,458,555. Density: Libya 4.2 per km², Papua New Guinea 23 per km².