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Botswana's area vs the Vatican's: size comparison by land type

Updated on by Georank team

Botswana is 1,187,218 times bigger by total area compared to the Vatican: 224,610 sq mi vs 0.19 sq mi. Without inland water, the land area of Botswana is 218,816 sq mi vs 0.17 sq mi for the Vatican — a 1,288,023 times difference in territory size.

  • Botswana ranks 47/197 by total surface area vs 197/197 for the Vatican.
  • Botswana occupies 0.38% of the land mass of all countries, compared with 0.0000003% for the Vatican.

True size map comparison: Botswana vs Vatican

See how Botswana and the Vatican compare in true size on the map. Drag the outlines to different latitudes to see how the Mercator projection affects their apparent size.

Total size and land area comparison

Botswana Vatican
Total area 224,610
sq mi
0.19
sq mi
Size difference ratio 1,187,218 1
Total area rank 47/197 197/197
Share of all countries' surface area 0.11% 0.0000001%
Land area 218,816
sq mi
0.17
sq mi
Land area difference ratio 1,288,023 1
Land area rank 47/197 197/197
Share of all countries' land area 0.38% 0.0000003%
Population 2,521,139 1,000
Population density 11.9 ppl/mi² 5,493 ppl/mi²

Surface area by type

Botswana Vatican
Forest area 57,528
sq mi
n/a
Forest area as share of land 26.3% n/a
Forest area rank 44/196 n/a
World's forests share 0.37% n/a
Agricultural land area 99,854
sq mi
n/a
Agricultural land share 45.6% n/a
Agricultural land area rank 43/194 n/a
Share of global agricultural land 0.54% n/a
Arable land 1,004
sq mi
n/a
Arable land share 0.46% n/a
Arable land area rank 138/191 n/a
Permanent cropland 7.72
sq mi
n/a
Permanent cropland share 0.004% n/a
Permanent cropland area rank 176/192 n/a
Water area 5,794
sq mi
0.02
sq mi
Water as share of total area 2.58% 10.2%
Water area rank 34/197 167/197
Roads length 19,727
mi
5.59
mi
Land borders length 2,701
mi
2.11
mi
Coastline length 0
mi
0
mi

Botswana vs Vatican size on the map

Data sources: World Bank | Agriculture & Rural Development (2026, retrieved 2026-04-06).

GeoRank.org/size/botswana/vatican | CC BY

The map above outlines the borders of Botswana and the Vatican but is not accurate for size comparison because it's a 2d map with Mercator projection that distorts territories near the poles. The farther a country is from the equator, the more magnified it appears. More about country size projections.

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Data sources:

  1. World Bank | Agriculture & Rural Development (2023–2026, retrieved 2026-04-06)
  2. Wikidata (2026, retrieved 2026-02-08)
  3. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) (2019–2025, retrieved 2026-02-20)
  4. United Nations | World Population Prospects (2026, retrieved 2026-03-10)

Total agricultural land encompasses all areas used for agriculture: territories under permanent and temporary crops and pastures. It includes land under flowering shrubs, fruit and nut trees, and vineyards, but excludes sites utilized for timber production.

Arable land encompasses fields utilized for temporary crop production, pastures, market or kitchen gardens, and temporarily fallowed land. Land abandoned due to shifting cultivation practices is not included.

Permanent cropland refers to farmland for the long-term cultivation of crops, such as coffee, cocoa, and rubber, which do not require replanting after each harvest. This category encompasses land with permanent crops like flowering shrubs, fruit and nut trees, and vines, but does not include land under trees for timber production.

Inland areas under water, such as large rivers, lakes, and some coastal waterways.

Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) — you’re free to copy, share, remix, adapt, and use even commercially as long as you give appropriate credit and clearly indicate if you made changes. Other sources may be subject to different license terms.