Malta vs US Virgin Islands
US Virgin Islands is 9% larger than Malta.
MaltaUS Virgin IslandsMalta moved onto US Virgin Islands · Equal-area projection
0.91×
Malta is 0.91× the area of US Virgin Islands. Put the other way, US Virgin Islands is 1.09× the size of Malta.
 Malta |  US Virgin Islands | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaUS Virgin Islands: 1.09× the area | 316 km²#186 of 194 | 346 km² |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationMalta: 5.59× the population | 579,704#166 of 194 · 2025 | 103,7922025 |
| DensityMalta: 6.12× the density | 1,835 / km²#4 of 194 | 300 / km² |
| Urban populationAbout the same urban share | 96%#9 of 192 · 2025 | 95%2025 |
| Fertility rateUS Virgin Islands: 1.95× the births per woman | 1.01 per woman#188 of 192 · 2024 | 1.97 per woman2024 |
| Population growthMalta: 2.45 points higher | +1.89%#51 of 192 · 2025 | −0.56%2025 |
| Birth rateUS Virgin Islands: 1.44× the birth rate | 7.7 per 1,000#174 of 192 · 2024 | 11.1 per 1,0002024 |
| Death rateUS Virgin Islands: 1.26× the death rate | 7.3 per 1,000#93 of 192 · 2024 | 9.2 per 1,0002024 |
| Children under 15US Virgin Islands: 3.6 points higher | 12.9%#182 of 192 · 2025 | 16.5%2025 |
| People over 65US Virgin Islands: 2.6 points higher | 20.5%#28 of 192 · 2025 | 23.1%2025 |
| Net migrationMalta: 12.3 per 1,000 higher | +8.9 per 1,000#9 of 192 · 2025 | −3.4 per 1,0002025 |
| Refugees abroad | 0.02 per 1,000#145 of 190 · 2025 | — |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyMalta: 2.2 years longer | 83.0 years#18 of 192 · 2024 | 80.8 years2024 |
| Infant mortality | 4.7 per 1,000 births#144 of 191 · 2024 | — |
| Doctors | 4.51 per 1,000#16 of 178 · 2022 | — |
| University enrolment | 80.5%#23 of 145 · 2023 | — |
| Human Development Index | 0.924#23 of 190 · 2023 | — |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | $41,440#26 of 185 · 2025 | — |
| GDPMalta: 5.94× the economy | $27.77B2025 | $4.67B2022 |
| Income group | High income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Malta: 1.45× the output per person | $72,210#21 of 184 · 2025 | $49,7852022 |
| GDP growthMalta: 5.3 points higher | +4.0%#69 of 187 · 2025 | −1.3%2022 |
| Inflation | +2.4%#103 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentUS Virgin Islands: 3.93× the unemployment | 2.9%#144 of 178 · 2025 | 11.4%2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 0.4%#107 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 31.8#104 of 149 · 2023 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureUS Virgin Islands: 0.7 points higher | 0.9% of jobs#172 of 178 · 2025 | 1.6% of jobs2025 |
| Jobs in industryMalta: 1.1 points higher | 17.7% of jobs#110 of 178 · 2025 | 16.6% of jobs2025 |
| Jobs in servicesUS Virgin Islands: 0.5 points higher | 81.4% of jobs#10 of 178 · 2025 | 81.9% of jobs2025 |
| Foreign investment | 170.1% of GDP#1 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| ExportsMalta: 21.7 points higher | 119.1% of GDP#5 of 168 · 2025 | 97.4% of GDP2022 |
| Military spending | 0.5% of GDP#146 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet users | 94%#33 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsMalta: 1.56× the mobile subscriptions | 142 per 100#32 of 191 · 2024 | 91 per 1002022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaUS Virgin Islands: 39.3× the forest share | 2% of land#174 of 192 · 2024 | 59% of land2024 |
| CO₂ per person | 3.18 t a year#81 of 185 · 2024 | 0.00 t a year2024 |
| Renewable energyMalta: 2.7 points higher | 8.6%#150 of 190 · 2021 | 5.9%2022 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Malta: 1.59× the air pollution | 10.8 µg/m³#149 of 191 · 2023 | 6.8 µg/m³2023 |
| Protected landMalta: 15.7 points higher | 29.0% of land#37 of 191 · 2025 | 13.3% of land2025 |
| Arable landMalta: 20.0 points higher | 22.2% of land#46 of 190 · 2024 | 2.2% of land2024 |
| Water stress | 72.6%#24 of 176 · 2022 | — |
| Precipitation | 560 mm#137 of 180 · 2022 | — |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityMalta: 0.07 higher | +1.04#31 of 193 · 2025 | +0.972025 |
| Control of corruptionMalta: 0.25 higher | +0.18#72 of 193 · 2025 | −0.072025 |
| Homicide rate | 0.6 per 100,000#132 of 146 · 2023 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Territory of United States of America |
| Government | Parliamentary republic | Dependent territoryunincorporated organized territory of the US with local self-government; republican form of territorial government with separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches |
| Member of | EU, Euro area, Schengen Area | — |
| Capital | Valletta | Charlotte Amalie |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) | United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | English, Maltese | English |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+1, summer time UTC+2 | UTC−4 |
| Calling code | +356 | +1 340 |
| Region | Southern Europe, Europe | Caribbean, North America |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
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; US Virgin Islands at 18° N is stretched to 1.11×. 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 US Virgin Islands?
- No. Malta is 9% smaller than US Virgin Islands. Malta covers 316 km² and US Virgin Islands covers 346 km².
- How many times does Malta fit into US Virgin Islands?
- About 1.1 times: US Virgin Islands has 1.09× the area of Malta.
- Why do Malta and US Virgin Islands 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 US Virgin Islands about 1.11×. 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 US Virgin Islands?
- Malta: 579,704 people against 103,792. Density: Malta 1,835 per km², US Virgin Islands 300 per km².
- Where do people live longer, Malta or US Virgin Islands?
- In Malta: life expectancy at birth is 83.0 years, against 80.8 — 2.2 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Malta and US Virgin Islands have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Malta: parliamentary republic; US Virgin Islands: dependent territory.