New Zealand vs Japan: size comparison
Japan is 1.4 times the size of New Zealand.
- New Zealand 270,470 km²
- Japan 377,980 km²
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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
New Zealand is centred around 44°S and Japan around 37°N. At those latitudes the Mercator projection used by most world maps draws New Zealand 1.9 times and Japan 1.6 times larger than they would appear at the equator.
So on a typical world map, Japan looks 1.1 times the size of New Zealand. In reality Japan is 1.4 times the size of New Zealand.
| Country | True area | Centred around | Mercator enlargement |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 270,470 km² | 44°S | ×1.9 |
| 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 New Zealand
- Germany vs Japan
- Norway 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
- Russia vs Brazil
- Russia vs Australia
- Russia vs India
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New Zealand vs Japan: questions
Which is bigger, New Zealand or Japan?
Japan is 1.4 times the size of New Zealand. New Zealand covers 270,470 km² and Japan covers 377,980 km².
Why do New Zealand and Japan look a different size on world maps?
New Zealand is centred around 44°S and Japan around 37°N. At those latitudes the Mercator projection used by most world maps draws New Zealand 1.9 times and Japan 1.6 times larger than they would appear at the equator. So on a typical world map, Japan looks 1.1 times the size of New Zealand.
How many times does New Zealand fit into Japan?
By area, New Zealand would fit into Japan about 1.4 times.