Mali vs Sudan

Sudan is 52% larger than Mali. Mali would fit into Sudan about 1.5 times.

MaliSudanMali moved onto Sudan · Equal-area projection
0.66×
Mali is 0.66× the area of Sudan. Put the other way, Sudan is 1.52× the size of Mali.
MaliSudan
Area1,240,192 km²1,886,068 km²
Population25,198,82151,662,147
Density20 / km²27 / km²
CapitalBamakoKhartoum
RegionWestern AfricaNorthern Africa
CoastlineLandlockedHas a coast
Neighbours77

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Mali sits at about 17°N and is stretched to 1.1× its true area; Sudan at 16° N is stretched to 1.08×. 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 Mali bigger than Sudan?
No. Mali is 34% smaller than Sudan. Mali covers 1,240,192 km² and Sudan covers 1,886,068 km².
How many times does Mali fit into Sudan?
About 1.5 times: Sudan has 1.52× the area of Mali.
Why do Mali and Sudan look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Mali is drawn about 1.1× its true area there and Sudan about 1.08×. 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, Mali or Sudan?
Sudan: 51,662,147 people against 25,198,821. Density: Mali 20 per km², Sudan 27 per km².