North America · True size
🇬🇱 Greenland
6.8×
Greenland looks 6.8× bigger on the old map than it really is.
True area
2,154,786 km²
On the old map
6.8×
drawn bigger than true
Distortion rank
#1
of 176 · 1 = most inflated
Share of world land
1.60%
On the old map
Greenland looks about the same size as Russia on the old map — it isn't.
Shapes above: Greenland at the size the old map gives it, next to Russia's true size. Greenland's real area is 2,154,786 km² — Russia is 16,879,951 km².
By area
Greenland is big enough to fit Mexico inside it, by area — 1,962,308 km² combined.
Greenland would fit inside Algeria, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Kazakhstan, by area.
How many fit?
The United Kingdom fits inside Greenland 9.0 times. United Arab Emirates fits inside Greenland 30 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°. Greenland's middle sits at 73°N, where the stretch is about 12×.
Area stretch on the old map at each latitude, equator to 80°. The number at the top of this page compares Greenland's whole share of the old map with its real share of the world's land.
Nearby