Move the comparison set
Drag any colored country anywhere on the map. The size updates based on its new latitude, just like Mercator does.
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Country Size Comparison
Canada and the United States are close in total area, but Canada appears more inflated on Mercator maps because it reaches farther north.
Drag any colored country anywhere on the map. The size updates based on its new latitude, just like Mercator does.
True Size Comparison
Canada and the United States are close in total area, but Canada appears more inflated on Mercator maps because it reaches farther north.
Canada is only slightly larger than the United States by total area, but Mercator projection makes northern Canada look much bigger.
Use the interactive Mercator map above to move countries away from their original latitude. The shape is repositioned on the same projection so you can see how apparent scale changes in real time.
Traditional world maps often exaggerate high-latitude countries. A true size comparison makes the area relationship clearer than a static Mercator map.
No. Canada is about 9.98 million square kilometers and the United States is about 9.83 million square kilometers.
Canada extends into high northern latitudes, where Mercator projection stretches land area.