Australia is 28% larger than Europe excluding European Russia. Areas below are total areas from national statistics; the Mercator factor shows how much a standard web map inflates each one.
Australia is larger by 653,295 sq mi (1,692,024 km²).
Share of the two areas combined (true area, not map area)
| Metric | 🇦🇺 Australia | 🇪🇺 Europe (without Russia) | Ratio / Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Area (Sq Miles) | 2,969,907 sq mi | 2,316,612 sq mi | 1.28x |
| Total Area (Sq Kilometers) | 7,692,024 km² | 6,000,000 km² | 1.28x |
| Population | 26,000,000 | 600,000,000 | 23.1x less |
| Population Density | 8.8 people / sq mi | 259 people / sq mi | Europe 29.6x denser |
| Capital or Seat | Canberra | None (44 countries) | - |
| Largest Metropolitan Area | Sydney | London / Paris | - |
| Latitude Center | -25.0° | 50.0° | 75.0° lat diff |
| Mercator Area Inflation Factor | 1.22x | 2.42x | 0.50x visual distortion |
European nations are inflated heavily by Mercator maps because of high northern latitudes (45°N to 70°N). In real terms, Australia spans more land area than all of non-Russian Europe combined.
Mercator projection formulas stretch surface area proportionally to sec²(φ) = 1 / cos²(φ), magnifying landmasses drastically near the north and south poles.
Australia spans 2,969,907 square miles, making it larger than all European nations combined outside of Russia (approx. 2.32 million sq mi).
Australia is home to the world's largest living structure, the Great Barrier Reef.
Europe comprises approximately 50 countries, including transcontinental states like Turkey and Kazakhstan.
Mercator factors use the center latitude only (area scale = 1 / cos² of latitude), so they are approximations for places that span many degrees of latitude.
Use published areas from national statistics offices or census gazetteers rather than judging by pixels on a flat web map.
Remember that Web Mercator tiles distort areas by 1/cos²(latitude). High-latitude regions appear vastly larger than equatorial states.
Drag one outline over the other in the true size tool; the shape is re-projected as it moves, so it keeps its real size.
Australia is larger than Western, Central, and Eastern Europe combined if you exclude the Russian portion of the continent.
Europe (without Russia) has about 600,000,000 people versus 26,000,000 in Australia, roughly 23.1 times as many. Per square mile, that is about 8.8 people in Australia and 259 in Europe (without Russia).
By area, Europe (without Russia) (6,000,000 km²) fits into Australia (7,692,024 km²) about 1.28 times. Shapes differ, so this is an area ratio, not a literal tiling.
