Interactive · 60 countries
Is Greenland really larger than Africa?
The Mercator projection inflates high-latitude regions. Click a country, then drag it toward the equator — it shrinks based on latitude so you can compare its real size.
How to read it
What this page helps you check
This is an educational viewer for comparing map appearance with actual area. Select a country and drag it toward the equator to see how much of its apparent size came from high-latitude Mercator inflation.
Representative comparisons
| Country | Actual area | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| Greenland | 2,166,086 km² | High latitude makes it look much larger than its actual area on a Mercator map. |
| India | 3,287,263 km² | Its actual area is larger than Greenland, even though many wall maps make that hard to feel. |
| Brazil | 8,515,770 km² | A large country closer to the equator, so its Mercator inflation is less extreme. |
| Japan | 377,915 km² | A familiar reference point for judging the scale of the larger countries. |
Distortion formula
Mercator linear scale is sec(φ) = 1 / cos(φ), and area scale is sec²(φ) = 1 / cos²(φ). At 60° latitude, length is roughly doubled and area is roughly quadrupled.
What not to use it for
The drag stretch is an educational approximation. Do not use it for surveying, border interpretation, precise area calculation, or political boundary verification.
Sources and review date
Map geometry comes from Natural Earth / world-atlas, projection handling uses d3-geo, and actual area values are checked against CIA World Factbook Area, total. Last reviewed: .