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
Drag India or the United States across the map to compare their true area and see how latitude changes apparent scale.
Drag any colored country anywhere on the map. The size updates based on its new latitude, just like Mercator does.
True Size Comparison
Drag India or the United States across the map to compare their true area and see how latitude changes apparent scale.
The United States is about three times the area of India, but apparent size still changes as each country moves north or south on a Mercator map.
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.
India is about 3.29 million square kilometers, while the United States is about 9.83 million square kilometers.
India is closer to the tropics than many northern countries, so its Mercator distortion is smaller than places near the poles.