Malta vs New Caledonia

New Caledonia is 58.8 times larger than Malta. Malta would fit into New Caledonia about 59 times.

MaltaNew CaledoniaMalta moved onto New Caledonia · Equal-area projection
0.02×
Malta is 0.02× the area of New Caledonia. Put the other way, New Caledonia is 58.8× the size of Malta.
MaltaNew Caledonia
Area316 km²18,576 km²
Population579,704295,333
Density1,835 / km²16 / km²
CapitalVallettaNoum'ea
RegionSouthern EuropeMelanesia
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours00

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Malta sits at about 36°N and is stretched to 1.52× its true area; New Caledonia at 21° S is stretched to 1.15×. 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 Malta bigger than New Caledonia?
No. Malta is 58.8 times smaller than New Caledonia. Malta covers 316 km² and New Caledonia covers 18,576 km².
How many times does Malta fit into New Caledonia?
About 59 times: New Caledonia has 58.8× the area of Malta.
Why do Malta and New Caledonia look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Malta is drawn about 1.52× its true area there and New Caledonia about 1.15×. 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, Malta or New Caledonia?
Malta: 579,704 people against 295,333. Density: Malta 1,835 per km², New Caledonia 16 per km².