The True Size of Indonesia
Compare Indonesia with other countries and regions on an interactive map to see their actual relative sizes.
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How big is Indonesia?
Indonesia covers about 1,904,569 km² (735,358 sq mi). On a Mercator map its apparent size depends entirely on latitude — drag the outline above onto another part of the world to see how it really compares.
Indonesia on a Mercator map
The centre of this country lies at 2° S, almost on the equator, where Mercator distorts least of all. The map shows it at very nearly its real size, which almost no country further north or south can claim.
Its real area is 1,904,569 km². The country closest to that size: Sudan.
Indonesia compared with other countries
Total areas including inland water; ratios are rounded.
| Country | Area (km²) | Compared with Indonesia |
|---|---|---|
 Russia | 17,098,242 | 9× larger |
 Canada | 9,984,670 | 5.2× larger |
 United States | 9,833,517 | 5.2× larger |
 China | 9,596,960 | 5× larger |
 Brazil | 8,515,770 | 4.5× larger |
 Australia | 7,741,220 | 4.1× larger |
 India | 3,287,263 | 1.7× larger |
 Argentina | 2,780,400 | 1.5× larger |
 Greenland | 2,166,086 | 1.1× larger |
 Mexico | 1,964,375 | about the same |
 Pakistan | 796,095 | 2.4× smaller |
 France | 643,801 | 3× smaller |
 Ukraine | 603,550 | 3.2× smaller |
 Japan | 377,915 | 5× smaller |
 Poland | 312,685 | 6.1× smaller |
 New Zealand | 268,838 | 7.1× smaller |
 United Kingdom | 243,610 | 7.8× smaller |
 Netherlands | 41,543 | 46× smaller |
Countries closest in size to Indonesia
Measured on the globe from the same outlines the map draws, so the figures are approximate. Drag any of them next to Indonesia to see the difference for yourself.
How big Indonesia looks at other latitudes
Drag the outline so its centre sits on each of these latitudes and the map draws it this many times larger than its real area. Mercator stretches area roughly by the square of the scale, so the growth is steep.
| Where it actually sits (2° S) | its real size |
| At the equator (Indonesia, Kenya, Ecuador) | its real size |
| At 30° (Egypt, northern Mexico, central Argentina) | 1.3× its real size |
| At 45° (northern Italy, Minnesota, New Zealand) | 1.9× its real size |
| At 60° (Oslo, Helsinki, southern Alaska) | 3.7× its real size |
| At 72° (central Greenland) | 8.5× its real size |
Questions about the size of Indonesia
How big is Indonesia?+
Indonesia has a total area of about 1,904,569 km² (735,358 sq mi), including inland water. The country closest to it in size is Sudan.
Is Indonesia bigger than Saudi Arabia?+
Not quite. Saudi Arabia covers about 1,925,876 km², roughly 2.9% more than Indonesia. Put both on the map and the difference stays the same wherever you drag them, because every outline is drawn at its true size.
Does the map show Indonesia at its real size?+
Very nearly. The centre of Indonesia is at 2° S, close to the equator, where Mercator distorts least. Drag the outline north or south and it grows, which is how far-off countries end up looking bigger than Indonesia when they are not.