Afghanistan is 1.17× the size of France

Afghanistan covers about 642,000 km² (248,000 mi²) and France about 548,000 km² (212,000 mi²). Below, both outlines are drawn at one scale and centred on each other.

642,000km²Afghanistan
548,000km²France

200 km

Afghanistan
France

Outlines show main territory. France also has about 88,900 km² of overseas territory. These are not drawn, and not counted in the comparison.

What fits

France is 85% of the size of Afghanistan.
Afghanistan is larger by 94,300 km² (36,400 mi²), which is 17% of the area of France.
Measured in Belgiums: Afghanistan is about 20.9, France about 17.9.

How they differ

Afghanistan is larger, but France has the larger population: 68.6 million against 41.5 million, 1.65× as many people.
Per square kilometre that is 108 in France against 65 in Afghanistan: France is 1.67× as densely populated.
Their centres are about 5,410 km apart.
On a standard web map France looks larger than Afghanistan: Afghanistan at 34°N is drawn about 1.4× too large and France at 47°N about 2.1×, so the map shows France as 1.24× the size of Afghanistan, when Afghanistan is 1.17× the size of France.
Together Afghanistan and France cover 1,190,000 km², close to the size of Niger (1,181,000 km², 0.7% smaller).
The gap between them, 94,300 km², is about the size of Liberia (95,300 km²).
At France's density, Afghanistan would have 69.2 million people (it has 41.5 million). At Afghanistan's density, France would have 41.1 million (it has 68.6 million).
France's centre is 12.7° of latitude, about 1,410 km, farther north than Afghanistan's.

Who wins on what

Measure	Winner	By
Larger area	Afghanistan	1.17×
More people	France	1.65×
More crowded	France	1.67×
Farther north	France	12.7° of latitude
Stretched more on a web map	France	2.1× against 1.4×

Both against the same yardsticks

Yardstick	Afghanistan	France
Belgium 30,700 km²	20.9×	17.9×
United Kingdom 244,000 km²	2.63×	2.25×
Germany 358,000 km²	1.80×	1.53×
Japan 374,000 km²	1.72×	1.47×
India 3,151,000 km²	0.20×	0.17×
Brazil 8,473,000 km²	0.08×	0.06×
United States 9,447,000 km²	0.07×	0.06×
Russia 16,980,000 km²	0.04×	0.03×

Each figure is the place's area divided by the yardstick's.

Side by side

	Afghanistan	France
Area, main territory	642,000 km²248,000 mi²	548,000 km²212,000 mi²
Area with overseas territory	642,000 km²	637,000 km²
Population	41.5 millionWikidata, 2023	68.6 millionWikidata, 2025
Density	65 per km²	108 per km²
Official area	652,000 km²Wikidata	644,000 km²Wikidata
Capital	Kabul	Paris
Latitude range	29°N to 38°N	41°N to 51°N
Continent	Asia	Europe

Population: Wikidata 2023 and Wikidata 2025, covering each whole country. Official figures: Wikidata (CC0).

Wikidata's official figure of 652,000 km² agrees with our measured area of 642,000 km², to within 2%.
Wikidata's official figure of 644,000 km² agrees with our measured area of 637,000 km², to within 2%.

Similar in size to Afghanistan

Similar in size to France

More comparisons

Sources and method

Outlines: Natural Earth, 1:10m Admin 0 - Countries, public domain
Boundary: De facto, as drawn by Natural Earth. Main territory: the largest landmass and every part within 1,000 km of it.
Area: Measured on the WGS84 ellipsoid from the full-detail outlines, shown rounded. Comparisons use main-territory area.
Drawing: Each outline is projected with an equal-area projection centred on its own centroid, so areas stay true and the two can be laid over each other.
Data built: 2026-11-11

Full method