Which is bigger: Western Sahara or Poland?

Poland is larger (312,679 km²) — about 1.2 times the size of Western Sahara (266,000 km²).

Why do Western Sahara and Poland look different on the map than in reality?

The common Mercator projection enlarges areas the farther they lie from the equator, so the on-map size proportions of Western Sahara and Poland are distorted compared to their true land area.

02Act II · 1:1 studioChange pair ↙

Western Sahara×Poland

Put Western Sahara and Poland on the same scale. Drag, separate, and see what the Mercator map hides.

Reverse order ⇄

True-size comparison

Same scale. Real difference.

Drag the outlines to overlap them, or place them side by side.

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Western Sahara ↗

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Total surface area266,000 km²ed. 2024

Population652,271

TypeCountry

Poland ↗

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Total surface area312,679 km²ed. 2024

Population36,435,8612025

Land area306,270 km²2023

TypeCountry