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

Updated on by Georank team

Russia is 34,847,755 times bigger by total area compared to the Vatican: 6,592,849 sq mi vs 0.19 sq mi. Without inland water, the land area of Russia is 6,323,145 sq mi vs 0.17 sq mi for the Vatican — a 37,220,159 times difference in territory size.

  • Russia ranks 1/197 by total surface area vs 197/197 for the Vatican.
  • Russia occupies 11% of the land mass of all countries, compared with 0.0000003% for the Vatican.

True size map comparison: Russia vs Vatican

See how Russia 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

Russia Vatican
Total area 6,592,849
sq mi
0.19
sq mi
Size difference ratio 34,847,755 1
Total area rank 1/197 197/197
Share of all countries' surface area 3.35% 0.0000001%
Land area 6,323,145
sq mi
0.17
sq mi
Land area difference ratio 37,220,159 1
Land area rank 1/197 197/197
Share of all countries' land area 11% 0.0000003%
Population 143,533,851 1,000
Population density 22.4 ppl/mi² 5,493 ppl/mi²

Surface area by type

Russia Vatican
Forest area 3,147,937
sq mi
n/a
Forest area as share of land 49.8% n/a
Forest area rank 1/196 n/a
World's forests share 20.2% n/a
Agricultural land area 832,826
sq mi
n/a
Agricultural land share 13.2% n/a
Agricultural land area rank 5/194 n/a
Share of global agricultural land 4.52% n/a
Arable land 469,689
sq mi
n/a
Arable land share 7.43% n/a
Arable land area rank 3/191 n/a
Permanent cropland 7,722
sq mi
n/a
Permanent cropland share 0.12% n/a
Permanent cropland area rank 23/192 n/a
Water area 269,704
sq mi
0.02
sq mi
Water as share of total area 4.09% 10.2%
Water area rank 2/197 167/197
Roads length 981,326
mi
5.59
mi
Land borders length 13,923
mi
2.11
mi
Coastline length 23,396
mi
0
mi
Share of marine protected waters 2.2% n/a

Russia vs Vatican size on the map

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

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

The map above outlines the borders of Russia 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.