North America · True size
🇧🇿 Belize
2.2×
Belize is drawn 2.2× smaller on the old map than it really is.
True area
22,770 km²
On the old map
2.2×
drawn smaller than true
Distortion rank
#115
of 176 · 1 = most inflated
Share of world land
0.02%
On the old map
Belize looks about the same size as the Gambia on the old map — it isn't.
Shapes above: Belize at the size the old map gives it, next to the Gambia's true size. Belize's real area is 22,770 km² — the Gambia is 10,324 km².
By area
Belize would fit inside the United Kingdom, New Zealand and the Philippines, by area.
How many fit?
Qatar fits inside Belize 2.1 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°. Belize's middle sits at 17°N, where the stretch is about 1.1×.
Area stretch on the old map at each latitude, equator to 80°. The number at the top of this page compares Belize's whole share of the old map with its real share of the world's land.