North Korea vs Sri Lanka

North Korea is 84% larger than Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka would fit into North Korea about 1.8 times.

North KoreaSri LankaNorth Korea moved onto Sri Lanka · Equal-area projection
1.84×
North Korea is 1.84× the area of Sri Lanka.
North KoreaSri Lanka
Area120,540 km²65,610 km²
Population26,571,03621,756,000
Density220 / km²332 / km²
CapitalPyongyangColombo
RegionEastern AsiaSouthern Asia
CoastlineHas a coastHas a coast
Neighbours30

Why the map you grew up with disagrees

On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. North Korea sits at about 40°N and is stretched to 1.71× its true area; Sri Lanka at 8° N is stretched to 1.02×. That difference is why North Korea looks so much bigger than it is next to Sri Lanka. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.

Questions about this pair

Is North Korea bigger than Sri Lanka?
Yes. North Korea is 84% larger than Sri Lanka. North Korea covers 120,540 km² and Sri Lanka covers 65,610 km².
How many times does Sri Lanka fit into North Korea?
About 1.8 times: North Korea has 1.84× the area of Sri Lanka.
Why do North Korea and Sri Lanka look different on Google Maps?
Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. North Korea is drawn about 1.71× its true area there and Sri Lanka about 1.02×. That is why North Korea looks so much bigger than it really is next to Sri Lanka. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Which has more people, North Korea or Sri Lanka?
North Korea: 26,571,036 people against 21,756,000. Density: North Korea 220 per km², Sri Lanka 332 per km².