France is 1.10× the size of Spain
France covers about 548,000 km² (212,000 mi²) and Spain about 499,000 km² (193,000 mi²). Below, both outlines are drawn at one scale and centred on each other.
- 548,000km²France
- 499,000km²Spain
200 km
- France
- Spain
Outlines show main territory. France also has about 88,900 km² of overseas territory. Spain also has about 7,440 km² of overseas territory. These are not drawn, and not counted in the comparison.
What fits
- Spain is 91% of the size of France.
- France is larger by 48,400 km² (18,700 mi²), which is 9.7% of the area of Spain.
- Measured in Belgiums: France is about 17.9, Spain about 16.3.
How they differ
- France also has the larger population: 68.6 million against 48.6 million, 1.41× as many people.
- Per square kilometre that is 108 in France against 96 in Spain: France is 1.12× as densely populated.
- Their centres are about 841 km apart.
- A standard web map misstates the comparison: France at 47°N is drawn about 2.1× too large and Spain at 40°N about 1.7×, so the map shows France as 1.34× the size of Spain instead of 1.10×.
- Together France and Spain cover 1,047,000 km², close to the size of Mauritania (1,036,000 km², 1.0% smaller).
- The gap between them, 48,400 km², is about the size of Dominican Republic (48,400 km²).
- At Spain's density, France would have 61.0 million people (it has 68.6 million). At France's density, Spain would have 54.6 million (it has 48.6 million).
- France's centre is 6.2° of latitude, about 680 km, farther north than Spain's.
Who wins on what
| Measure | Winner | By |
|---|---|---|
| Larger area | France | 1.10× |
| More people | France | 1.41× |
| More crowded | France | 1.12× |
| Farther north | France | 6.2° of latitude |
| Stretched more on a web map | France | 2.1× against 1.7× |
Both against the same yardsticks
| Yardstick | France | Spain |
|---|---|---|
| Belgium 30,700 km² | 17.9× | 16.3× |
| United Kingdom 244,000 km² | 2.25× | 2.05× |
| Germany 358,000 km² | 1.53× | 1.40× |
| Japan 374,000 km² | 1.47× | 1.34× |
| India 3,151,000 km² | 0.17× | 0.16× |
| Brazil 8,473,000 km² | 0.06× | 0.06× |
| United States 9,447,000 km² | 0.06× | 0.05× |
| Russia 16,980,000 km² | 0.03× | 0.03× |
Each figure is the place's area divided by the yardstick's.
Side by side
| France | Spain | |
|---|---|---|
| Area, main territory | 548,000 km²212,000 mi² | 499,000 km²193,000 mi² |
| Area with overseas territory | 637,000 km² | 507,000 km² |
| Population | 68.6 millionWikidata, 2025 | 48.6 millionWikidata, 2024 |
| Density | 108 per km² | 96 per km² |
| Official area | 644,000 km²Wikidata | 506,000 km²Wikidata |
| Capital | Paris | Madrid |
| Latitude range | 41°N to 51°N | 35°N to 44°N |
| Continent | Europe | Europe |
Population: Wikidata 2025 and Wikidata 2024, covering each whole country. Official figures: Wikidata (CC0).
- Wikidata's official figure of 644,000 km² agrees with our measured area of 637,000 km², to within 2%.
- Wikidata's official figure of 506,000 km² agrees with our measured area of 507,000 km², to within 2%.
Similar in size to France
Similar in size to Spain
More comparisons
Send it to someone who won’t believe it
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