South Africa vs United States
United States is 8.05 times larger than South Africa. South Africa would fit into United States about 8.0 times.
South AfricaUnited StatesSouth Africa moved onto United States · Equal-area projection
0.12×
South Africa is 0.12× the area of United States. Put the other way, United States is 8.05× the size of South Africa.
| South Africa | United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 1,221,037 km² | 9,826,675 km² |
| Population | 64,747,319 | 341,784,857 |
| Density | 53 / km² | 35 / km² |
| Capital | Pretoria | Washington D.C. |
| Region | Southern Africa | Northern America |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Neighbours | 6 | 2 |
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. South Africa sits at about 29°S and is stretched to 1.31× its true area; United States at 45° N is stretched to 1.98×. That difference is why United States looks so much bigger than it is next to South Africa. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is South Africa bigger than United States?
- No. South Africa is 8.05 times smaller than United States. South Africa covers 1,221,037 km² and United States covers 9,826,675 km².
- How many times does South Africa fit into United States?
- About 8.0 times: United States has 8.05× the area of South Africa.
- Why do South Africa and United States look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. South Africa is drawn about 1.31× its true area there and United States about 1.98×. That is why United States looks so much bigger than it really is next to South Africa. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, South Africa or United States?
- United States: 341,784,857 people against 64,747,319. Density: South Africa 53 per km², United States 35 per km².