Germany vs Japan: size comparison
Japan is 1.06 times the size of Germany.
- Germany 357,110 km²
- Japan 377,980 km²
Drag a country, see its true size
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Drag the coloured shape anywhere on the map. It keeps its real size on the globe, so the map redraws it bigger near the poles and smaller near the equator.
Why they look different on a map
Germany is centred around 51°N and Japan around 37°N. At those latitudes the Mercator projection used by most world maps draws Germany 2.5 times and Japan 1.6 times larger than they would appear at the equator.
So on a typical world map, Germany looks 1.5 times the size of Japan. In reality Japan is 1.06 times the size of Germany. The map gets it backwards: the country that looks bigger is actually the smaller one.
| Country | True area | Centred around | Mercator enlargement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 357,110 km² | 51°N | ×2.5 |
| Japan | 377,980 km² | 37°N | ×1.6 |
The stretch is 1 divided by the cosine of the latitude, squared. At 60° north a country is drawn four times larger than the same country would be at the equator.
More size comparisons
- United Kingdom vs Japan
- United Kingdom vs Germany
- Germany vs France
- Norway vs Japan
- Sweden vs Germany
- Poland vs Germany
- New Zealand vs Japan
- Greenland vs DR Congo
- Greenland vs Australia
- Greenland vs United States
- Greenland vs Brazil
- Greenland vs India
- Greenland vs Mexico
- Greenland vs Saudi Arabia
- Greenland vs Algeria
- Russia vs Canada
- Russia vs United States
- Russia vs China
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Germany vs Japan: questions
Which is bigger, Germany or Japan?
Japan is 1.06 times the size of Germany. Germany covers 357,110 km² and Japan covers 377,980 km².
Why do Germany and Japan look a different size on world maps?
Germany is centred around 51°N and Japan around 37°N. At those latitudes the Mercator projection used by most world maps draws Germany 2.5 times and Japan 1.6 times larger than they would appear at the equator. So on a typical world map, Germany looks 1.5 times the size of Japan.
How many times does Germany fit into Japan?
By area, Germany would fit into Japan about 1.06 times.