California
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Total surface area423,967 km²2010
Land area403,466 km²2010
TypeUS state
US state. Total area includes land and water under the Census Bureau's 2010 definition.
Area source: U.S. Census Bureau (2010)
02Act II · 1:1 studioChange pair ↙
Which is bigger: California or Japan?
California is larger: 423,967 km² versus 377,930 km² for Japan, or about 12% more.
Both areas at the same scale: California and Japan. Drag the outlines, separate them and see what the Mercator map hides.
True-size comparison
Same scale. Real difference.
Drag the outlines to overlap them, or place them side by side.
Japan ↗
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Total surface area377,930 km²ed. 2024
Population123,366,7342025
Land area364,569 km²2023
TypeCountry
Area source: UN Demographic Yearbook 2024, Table 3
03 · Verdict
What the map gets wrong
True area tells a different story than the Mercator map.
True area ratio1.1×Larger in reality: California.
Mercator: estimate at the area’s center1.1×Looks larger on a Mercator map: California.
Why does this happen?
The Mercator projection enlarges areas more and more the farther they lie from the equator. The centers of the two areas lie about 37° (California) and 37° (Japan) from the equator. An estimate based on each center’s latitude gives an area ratio of 1.1 : 1, compared with the real ratio of 1.1 : 1. This is not a measurement of the entire outlines on a Mercator map.
Tip: You can also compare these items dynamically by clicking the link below and dragging them directly across the global interactive map.
Figures represent total surface area from the sources listed beside each subject. The overlay uses an equal-area projection. Coastal outlines are simplified and do not include all waters counted in the statistics. Their area ratio can therefore differ from the ratio of official total areas. Geometry: Natural Earth, public domain. Read the methodology ↗
Why do California and Japan look different on a Mercator map than in reality?
The Mercator projection preserves angles, which makes it useful for navigation, but it enlarges areas more and more the farther they lie from the equator. At 60° latitude, areas already appear four times larger than at the equator. A same-scale comparison like the one on this page greatly reduces that distortion.
How big is California in square kilometres?
California covers 423,967 km² in total: 403,466 km² of land and 20,501 km² of water. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010. Water includes inland, coastal and territorial categories under Census definitions. A coastal outline does not show the entire statistical water area.