Europe · True size
🇧🇪 Belgium
1.0×
Belgium looks 1.0× bigger on the old map than it really is.
True area
30,628 km²
On the old map
1.0×
drawn bigger than true
Distortion rank
#19
of 176 · 1 = most inflated
Share of world land
0.02%
On the old map
Belgium looks about the same size as Guinea-Bissau on the old map — it isn't.
Shapes above: Belgium at the size the old map gives it, next to Guinea-Bissau's true size. Belgium's real area is 30,628 km² — Guinea-Bissau is 32,044 km².
By area
Belgium would fit inside the United Kingdom, New Zealand and the Philippines, by area.
How many fit?
Qatar fits inside Belgium 2.8 times.
Why the old map gets it wrong
The old map stretches land more the further it is from the equator — twice the area at 45°, four times at 60°. Belgium's middle sits at 51°N, where the stretch is about 2.5×.
Area stretch on the old map at each latitude, equator to 80°. The number at the top of this page compares Belgium's whole share of the old map with its real share of the world's land.