How big is Qatar really?
Qatar covers 11,586 km² (4,470 sq mi). On the usual world map (the Mercator projection) it is drawn about 1.22 times bigger than it really is.
See Qatar at its true size on the map →True size vs the map
Both drawn at the same scale. The map keeps shapes but swells everything away from the equator.
Qatar in numbers
- Qatar is the 164th largest of the 196 countries and territories in Globegami.
- Countries of about the same true size: Gambia (11,300 km²), Vanuatu (12,190 km²), Falkland Islands (12,200 km²).
- The United Kingdom is 21 times the size of Qatar.
Why the map gets Qatar wrong
Qatar lies around 25°N. A Mercator map stretches distances there by about 1.11 times in every direction, so areas come out roughly 1.22 times too big near its middle. Most web maps use this projection because it keeps angles and shapes right for navigation, not because it shows sizes fairly.
In Globegami you can drag a copy of Qatar anywhere on Earth: it keeps its true size and grows or shrinks on the map as it moves, and you can fold the map back into a globe.
Areas: official totals including inland water (UN Statistics Division via Wikidata). Outlines: Natural Earth. How Globegami works