Scotland is larger: 78,801 km² versus 69,825 km² for Ireland, or about 13% more.
Both areas at the same scale: Scotland and Ireland. Drag the outlines, separate them and see what the Mercator map hides.
Drag the outlines to overlap them, or place them side by side.
One of the four nations of the United Kingdom. Area to the mean high water line, including inland water, from ONS (2024).
Area source: ONS Standard Area Measurements (2024)
Area source: UN Demographic Yearbook 2024, Table 3
True area tells a different story than the Mercator map.
The Mercator projection enlarges areas more and more the farther they lie from the equator. The centers of the two areas lie about 57° (Scotland) and 53° (Ireland) from the equator. An estimate based on each center’s latitude gives an area ratio of 1.4 : 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.
Each figure is the area described beside its subject, from the source listed there. 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 ↗
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.
Scotland covers 78,801 km² to the mean high water line, including inland water, and 77,900 km² of land alone. Source: ONS Standard Area Measurements, December 2024.
