Russia vs Canada Size: How Much Bigger Is Russia?

By SimpleMapLab·Published 15 May 2026·Reviewed against UN Statistics Division + CIA World Factbook·CC-BY 4.0

Russia is the largest country on Earth, covering 17.1 million km² (6.6 million sq mi). Canada — second largest — is 9.98 million km² (3.86 million sq mi). Russia is 1.71× larger, with the difference (2.75 million sq mi) bigger than the entire country of India. But Canada wins on coastline: 6.47× more coast than Russia, the longest of any country in the world.

Canada overlaid inside Russia at true equal-area scale. Russia rendered with a Conic Equal-Area projection tuned to its 50–70°N latitude band; Canada with a Lambert-style conic tuned to 49–77°N. Pixel area is honest — the visible Russian land outside Canada's footprint is the true 1.71× size difference.

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At a glance: Russia vs Canada by the numbers

Metric	Russia	Canada	Ratio
Total area (sq mi)	6,601,668	3,855,100	1.71× RU
Land area (sq mi)	6,323,142	3,511,022	1.80× RU
Population (2024)	144,444,000	40,770,000	3.54× RU
Density (/sq mi)	22.0	10.6	2.08× RU
GDP (2024, nominal)	$2.0T	$2.2T	~1.10× CA
Coastline (mi)	23,396	151,485	6.47× CA
Highest point (ft)	18,510 (Elbrus)	19,551 (Logan)	—
Time zones	11	6	—
Land borders	14 countries	1 country (USA)	—

How much bigger is Russia than Canada?

Russia is 1.71 times larger than Canada by total area — 2,746,568 more square miles, or about 7.1 million km² of additional land. That difference alone is bigger than the entire country of India (1.27 million sq mi). The two largest countries are not close — the gap between #1 and #2 is larger than the gap between #2 (Canada) and #6 (Australia, 2.97 million sq mi).

Russia and Canada together cover 26.6% of the world's land surfaceon just 2.4% of its population. Both are dominated by sub-Arctic terrain: Russia's Siberian taiga and tundra, Canada's Boreal forest and Arctic. Both have populations clustered in the south (along Russia's Western European border and Canada's 100-mile-from-US belt) leaving most of their territory virtually empty.

Russia after Alaska: the country that was even bigger

On March 30, 1867, the Russian Empire sold Alaska — 586,412 sq mi of sub-Arctic territory — to the United States for $7.2 million in gold (roughly $140 million in 2026 dollars; about $0.02 per acre). Before the sale, the Russian Empire was approximately 8.6 million sq mi — about 30% largerthan today's Russia. Had the sale not happened, Russia would still claim a North American territory the size of Mexico.

The Russian Empire grew during the Soviet era to roughly 8.65 million sq mi (22.4 million km²) at its peak in 1945–1991, including Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus, the Baltic states, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. The 1991 dissolution stripped roughly 2 million sq mi (5.3 million km²) from the Russian state — the difference between today's Russia and the late-Soviet USSR. That lost territory included Kazakhstan alone (1.05 million sq mi — bigger than Greenland).

Drawn to scale: Russia next to Canada

Both countries rendered at the same area-per-pixel scale, side by side. Russia's eastern Chukotka peninsula extends across the antimeridian; the projection is rotated so the country reads contiguously. Canada's Arctic archipelago — Baffin, Ellesmere, Victoria, and thousands of smaller islands — is the visual reason Canada has 6× Russia's coastline despite smaller land area.

Russia and Canada at equal area scale, each rendered with its own latitude-tuned Conic Equal-Area projection. Sources: UN Statistics Division 2024, CIA World Factbook 2024.

The coastline reversal: Canada beats Russia 6×

Canada has the world's longest coastline at 151,485 miles (243,791 km) — more than any other country, by a factor of 2.5× over the #2 country (Indonesia at ~59,000 mi). Russia, despite its larger area, ranks #3 globally at 23,396 mi. Canada has about 6.47× more coastline than Russia on 58% of the land.

The reason is geometry: Canada's Arctic archipelago contains the largest set of coastal islands of any country. Baffin Island (the world's 5th-largest island, 195,928 sq mi) alone has more coastline than most countries. Russia's coastline, by contrast, is mostly its long Arctic Ocean coast plus the Pacific from Vladivostok to Chukotka — long but smooth, with few archipelagos.

Notably, Canada has more coastline than the rest of the world's top 10 largest countries combined. The Arctic islands account for roughly 60% of that total.

What else is the size of Russia? Country-equivalents

Russia (6,601,668 sq mi) is approximately the size of:

The entire surface of Pluto (16.65 million km²) — within 2% of Russia's area
South America × 0.96 (Russia is just slightly smaller than the entire continent)
Australia × 2.24
Antarctica × 1.22
The combined area of India + China + Western Europe + Mongolia

What else is the size of Canada? Country-equivalents

Canada (3,855,100 sq mi) is approximately the size of:

Europe (10.18 million km², including European Russia) — within 2% of Canada's area
The United States × 1.02 — Canada is fractionally larger than the US (including AK, HI)
China × 1.04
Australia × 1.30
India × 3.03

10 surprising facts about Russia vs Canada

Russia + Canada together = 26.6% of world land. 2.4% of world population. The most depopulated 27% of the planet by area.
The Russia-Canada gap is bigger than India. Russia minus Canada = 2.75 million sq mi. India is 1.27 million.
Both countries border the Arctic Ocean. Canada owns the Arctic islands; Russia owns the longer continental coast. Together they share roughly 70% of the Arctic Ocean perimeter.
Russia has 11 time zones, Canada has 6. Russia's span is so wide that when it's Tuesday in Kaliningrad, it's already Wednesday in Kamchatka.
Russia borders 14 countries; Canada borders just 1. Russia: Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, North Korea, plus disputed maritime borders with USA and Japan. Canada: just the USA.
Canada has more coastline than Russia × 6. 151,485 mi vs 23,396 mi. Canada's coast is the longest of any country.
The 1867 Alaska Purchase shrank Russia 6.8%. Russian Empire pre-sale: 8.6M sq mi. Post-sale: ~8.0M sq mi. The sale alone was bigger than Mexico.
Soviet Russia was 30% larger than today. USSR peak: 8.65 million sq mi (22.4M km²). The 1991 dissolution stripped Russia of an area larger than India.
Russia is almost as big as Pluto. Pluto's surface: 16.65 million km². Russia: 17.10 million km². Russia is 2.7% bigger than the entire surface of Pluto.
Canada is virtually tied with the USA in area. Canada: 3,855,100 sq mi. USA (incl. AK, HI): 3,796,742 sq mi. Canada is 1.5% larger — but with 11.6% of the population.

Methodology and sources

Area: UN Statistics Division 2024 country profiles, cross-checked against CIA World Factbook 2024. Russia figure excludes Crimea and Sevastopol per UN-recognised boundaries (Russia claims include these regions, adding ~10,400 sq mi / 27,000 km²).

Population: UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), World Population Prospects 2024 mid-year estimates.

GDP: IMF World Economic Outlook (October 2024), nominal USD.

Coastline:NOAA Office for Coastal Management / CIA World Factbook general coastline figures. Both metrics are approximations — coastline length is a fractal-dependent measurement (the “coastline paradox”).

Visuals: Country outlines from the world-atlas 50m TopoJSON (public-domain). Russia rendered with d3.geoConicEqualArea, rotate −100°, parallels 50/70°N; Canada with rotate 95°, parallels 49/77°N. Both equal-area-preserving — pixel ratios are honest. Last reviewed 15 May 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Yes — Russia is the largest country in the world by area at 17,098,246 km² (6,601,668 sq mi), making it 1.71 times bigger than Canada, the second-largest country at 9,984,670 km² (3,855,100 sq mi). The two are not close: Russia has the area difference of an entire Argentina (1.07 million sq mi) more than Canada.

Russia is 1.71× Canada by total area — about 2.75 million sq mi (7.1 million km²) larger in absolute terms. The gap is bigger than the entire country of India (1.27 million sq mi). By land area only (excluding inland water bodies), Russia is 1.80× Canada — 2.81 million sq mi more land.

Russia, at 17,098,246 km² (6,601,668 sq mi). It is 1.71× larger than Canada (#2), 1.74× larger than China + USA (each ~9.8 million km², essentially tied at #3 and #4), 2.0× the size of Antarctica, and roughly 11% of the entire world's land surface.

Yes. On March 30, 1867, the Russian Empire sold Alaska (586,412 sq mi) to the United States for $7.2 million. Before that sale, the Russian Empire was approximately 8.6 million sq mi — even larger than today's Russia by about 30%. Russia could have remained the largest country in North America had the sale not happened.

Yes — by a massive margin. Canada has the world's longest coastline at 151,485 miles (243,791 km) — six times Russia's 23,396 miles. Canada's coastline includes its vast Arctic archipelago (Baffin, Ellesmere, Victoria Islands and thousands of smaller islands), while Russia's coastline, though long in absolute terms, is shorter per unit of land area.

Russia has approximately 144.4 million people (2024); Canada has approximately 40.8 million. Russia has 3.54× Canada's population on 1.71× the land area, giving Russia about 2.08× the population density (22 vs 10.6 people per sq mi). Both countries are sparse by global standards — Bangladesh has 3,277 people per sq mi.

Russia spans 11 time zones from UTC+2 (Kaliningrad) to UTC+12 (Kamchatka). Canada spans 6 time zones from UTC-3:30 (Newfoundland) to UTC-8 (Pacific) — fewer than Russia, but Canada also has half-hour Newfoundland time, an oddity it shares with only a handful of countries.

Russia (17.1M km²) is roughly the size of: Pluto's entire surface area (16.65 million km², within 2%), or Australia × 2.2, or the entire continent of South America × 0.97. By a different framing, it is bigger than the combined land area of Antarctica + Greenland + all of Western Europe.

Canada (9.98M km²) is roughly the size of Europe (10.18M km²) if you include European Russia, or just slightly smaller than the entire continent. Canada is also approximately 1.02× the area of the United States including Alaska and Hawaii — making the US and Canada virtually tied in total area, with Canada slightly larger.

Russia's enormous extent is the product of 400 years of imperial expansion starting in the late 1500s: Cossack and tsarist annexation of Siberia (mostly complete by 1700), 18th-century push to the Pacific, and 19th-century moves into Central Asia. The Soviet Union (1922–1991) was even larger at 22.4 million km² — its successor states (Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Belarus, etc.) account for the 5.3 million km² that's no longer Russia today.

Russia: the Trans-Siberian Highway (Moscow to Vladivostok) is 11,000 km / 6,800 miles — about 11 days non-stop driving. Canada: the Trans-Canada Highway (St. John's to Victoria) is 7,821 km / 4,860 miles — about 6 days non-stop. Both routes are among the longest in the world; Russia's edges it by about 80%.

Related size comparisons

Open Russia + Canada in the interactive Country Size Comparison tool — drag either country across the world map at true area scale.
Alaska vs Lower 48 size comparison — the contiguous US is 5.18× Alaska, the territory Russia sold in 1867.
Texas vs Alaska size comparison — Alaska is 2.18× Texas; closes the loop on the 1867 Purchase story.
Alaska vs California size comparison — Alaska is 3.66× California; the largest US state, by far.
Greenland vs Antarctica size comparison — Earth's two polar ice giants; Antarctica is 6.58× Greenland.
UK vs USA size comparison — the USA is 40× the UK; the colonial-expansion thread that parallels Alaska.
Mexico vs USA size comparison — the USA is 5× Mexico; the 1848 transfer parallels the 1867 Alaska Purchase.
All size comparisons — full library of state-vs-state and country-vs-country area comparisons.

Suggested citation: SimpleMapLab (2026). Russia vs Canada Size: How Much Bigger Is Russia? Part of the SimpleMapLab Size Comparisons series. Retrieved from https://www.simplemaplab.com/size-comparisons/russia-vs-canada. Licensed under CC-BY 4.0.