Country Size ComparisonD3 · TopoJSON · SVG
Russia vs United States: True Size Comparison
Russia spans far northern latitudes, so Mercator maps exaggerate parts of it. Compare Russia with the United States at true geographic scale.
Interactive Mercator map
Move the comparison set
Drag any coloured country north or south. The map reports the projection's apparent scale at the new latitude.
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Try moving Greenland toward DR Congo to compare the contrast.
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Keep exploring the scale
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True Size Comparison
Compare Russia and United States at true scale
Russia spans far northern latitudes, so Mercator maps exaggerate parts of it. Compare Russia with the United States at true geographic scale.
Russia is about 1.7 times the area of the United States, but Mercator projection can make the visual difference look even larger.
How the map helps
Move the selected countries away from their original latitude. The shapes stay on the same projection so their apparent scale changes in real time.
Why the result can be surprising
Traditional world maps exaggerate high-latitude countries. Moving both places to comparable latitudes makes the area relationship clearer.
FAQ
How much larger is Russia than the United States?
Russia is about 17.1 million square kilometers, compared with about 9.8 million square kilometers for the United States.
Does Mercator projection exaggerate Russia?
Yes. Because much of Russia is far north, Mercator projection stretches its apparent area on flat world maps.
Mercator is useful for navigation, but it does not preserve area. The country shapes and fixed area values remain unchanged as you move them.