The True Size of Netherlands
Compare Netherlands with other countries and regions on an interactive map to see their actual relative sizes.
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How big is Netherlands?
Netherlands covers about 41,543 km² (16,040 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.
Netherlands on a Mercator map
The centre of this country lies at 52° N, where the Mercator projection stretches area by about 2.7×. Its outline takes up as much room on the map as 110,862 km² would at the equator.
Its real area is 41,543 km². The country closest to that size: Taiwan.
Netherlands compared with other countries
Total areas including inland water; ratios are rounded.
| Country | Area (km²) | Compared with Netherlands |
|---|---|---|
 Russia | 17,098,242 | 412× larger |
 Canada | 9,984,670 | 240× larger |
 United States | 9,833,517 | 237× larger |
 China | 9,596,960 | 231× larger |
 Brazil | 8,515,770 | 205× larger |
 Australia | 7,741,220 | 186× larger |
 India | 3,287,263 | 79× larger |
 Argentina | 2,780,400 | 67× larger |
 Greenland | 2,166,086 | 52× larger |
 Mexico | 1,964,375 | 47× larger |
 Indonesia | 1,904,569 | 46× larger |
 Pakistan | 796,095 | 19× larger |
 France | 643,801 | 15× larger |
 Ukraine | 603,550 | 15× larger |
 Japan | 377,915 | 9.1× larger |
 Poland | 312,685 | 7.5× larger |
 New Zealand | 268,838 | 6.5× larger |
 United Kingdom | 243,610 | 5.9× larger |
Countries closest in size to Netherlands
Measured on the globe from the same outlines the map draws, so the figures are approximate. Drag any of them next to Netherlands to see the difference for yourself.
Slightly larger
Bhutan39,870 km²7.4% larger
Switzerland41,215 km²11% larger
Denmark42,411 km²14.2% larger
Slightly smaller
Taiwan36,005 km²3% smaller
Moldova33,115 km²10.8% smaller
Guinea-Bissau32,044 km²13.7% smaller
How big Netherlands 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 (52° N) | 2.7× 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) | 2× its real size |
| At 60° (Oslo, Helsinki, southern Alaska) | 4× its real size |
| At 72° (central Greenland) | 10.5× its real size |
Questions about the size of Netherlands
How big is Netherlands?+
Netherlands has a total area of about 41,543 km² (16,040 sq mi), including inland water. The country closest to it in size is Taiwan.
Is Netherlands bigger than Bhutan?+
Not quite. Bhutan covers about 39,870 km², roughly 7.4% more than Netherlands. Put both on the map and the difference stays the same wherever you drag them, because every outline is drawn at its true size.
Why does Netherlands look bigger on a map than it really is?+
Because the Mercator projection stretches area the further you get from the equator. The centre of Netherlands is at 52° N, where the map draws it about 2.7× too large — as much room as 110,862 km² would take at the equator. Drag the outline toward the equator and it shrinks to its honest size.