Alaska vs Saudi Arabia: wider by how much?
Alaska measures 3,636 km (2,259 mi) east to west, and Saudi Arabia measures 2,115 km (1,314 mi) east to west. Saudi Arabia would have to grow by 72% to match Alaska, which is 1.72 times its east-west span. Put the other way round, Saudi Arabia covers 58% of Alaska on the axis both are judged on. Alaska and Saudi Arabia are both written in thousands of kilometres, and the 72% between them is the whole of the difference.
| Object | Real size | Axis measured | What the figure covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 3,636 km 2,259 mi |
East-west span | Widest extent of the outline on that axis |
| Saudi Arabia | 2,115 km 1,314 mi |
East-west span | Widest extent of the outline on that axis |
Both figures, Alaska and Saudi Arabia, come from the Size It Up measurement set, one real-world size and one measured axis per object, last checked in September 2026; outline provenance is listed on the sources page.
Why this one is hard to judge by eye
The outline of Alaska that most people carry comes from a world map, and every projection that keeps angles true stretches whatever sits far from the equator; the outline of Saudi Arabia above is scaled from measured distances instead.
What each figure covers
Alaska. East to west, Alaska reaches across four time zones. The outline includes the Aleutian chain, which is what makes the span so much larger than the compact shape people picture.
Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is measured east to west, Red Sea to Gulf. Most of the interior is desert with no permanent settlement at all.
Alaska and Saudi Arabia are both quoted as an east-west span, which is what makes the ratio above a like-for-like figure.
What else is about that size?
Measured the same way, Alaska at 3,636 km sits within a quarter of Australia at 4,036 km, Mexico at 3,170 km and Brazil at 4,308 km. Saudi Arabia at 2,115 km has Democratic Republic of the Congo at 2,114 km, Pluto at 2,377 km and Papua New Guinea at 1,668 km for company, within a quarter. Swapping any of those in for Alaska would move its ratio to Saudi Arabia by less than 25%.