The True Size of Ukraine
Compare Ukraine with other countries and regions on an interactive map to see their actual relative sizes.
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Type a country name and press Enter to add it to the map.
How big is Ukraine?
Ukraine covers about 603,550 km² (233,032 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.
Ukraine on a Mercator map
The centre of this country lies at 49° N, where the Mercator projection stretches area by about 2.3×. Its outline takes up as much room on the map as 1,410,517 km² would at the equator.
Its real area is 603,550 km². The country closest to that size: Botswana.
Ukraine compared with other countries
Total areas including inland water; ratios are rounded.
| Country | Area (km²) | Compared with Ukraine |
|---|---|---|
 Russia | 17,098,242 | 28× larger |
 Canada | 9,984,670 | 17× larger |
 United States | 9,833,517 | 16× larger |
 China | 9,596,960 | 16× larger |
 Brazil | 8,515,770 | 14× larger |
 Australia | 7,741,220 | 13× larger |
 India | 3,287,263 | 5.4× larger |
 Argentina | 2,780,400 | 4.6× larger |
 Greenland | 2,166,086 | 3.6× larger |
 Mexico | 1,964,375 | 3.3× larger |
 Indonesia | 1,904,569 | 3.2× larger |
 Pakistan | 796,095 | 1.3× larger |
 France | 643,801 | 1.1× larger |
 Japan | 377,915 | 1.6× smaller |
 Poland | 312,685 | 1.9× smaller |
 New Zealand | 268,838 | 2.2× smaller |
 United Kingdom | 243,610 | 2.5× smaller |
 Netherlands | 41,543 | 15× smaller |
Countries closest in size to Ukraine
Measured on the globe from the same outlines the map draws, so the figures are approximate. Drag any of them next to Ukraine to see the difference for yourself.
Slightly larger
Botswana580,624 km²1.8% larger
Morocco582,379 km²2.1% larger
Madagascar594,623 km²4.3% larger
Slightly smaller
Thailand515,721 km²9.5% smaller
Spain506,179 km²11.2% smaller
Somalia473,624 km²16.9% smaller
How big Ukraine 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 (49° N) | 2.3× 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) | 10.4× its real size |
Questions about the size of Ukraine
How big is Ukraine?+
Ukraine has a total area of about 603,550 km² (233,032 sq mi), including inland water. The country closest to it in size is Botswana.
Is Ukraine bigger than Botswana?+
Not quite. Botswana covers about 580,624 km², roughly 1.8% more than Ukraine. 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 Ukraine 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 Ukraine is at 49° N, where the map draws it about 2.3× too large — as much room as 1,410,517 km² would take at the equator. Drag the outline toward the equator and it shrinks to its honest size.