Beijing
16,411 km²
Kyoto
828 km²
China
Japan
Area Comparison
Beijing is 19.8x larger than Kyoto
Population Comparison
Beijing has 14.8x more people than Kyoto
In terms of area, Beijing is 19.8x the size of Kyoto. Beijing spans 16,411 km² (6,336 mi²) while Kyoto covers 828 km² (320 mi²) — a difference of 15,583 km². You could fit Kyoto inside Beijing approximately 19 times.
To put Beijing's size in perspective, its area of 16,411 km² is about 2.6x the size of Shanghai. Meanwhile, Kyoto at 828 km² is roughly the same size as New York City.
Beijing's footprint is roughly about 2,300,000 American football fields, 160 times the area of Paris, or 140 times the area of San Francisco — pick whichever unit feels intuitive. Kyoto works out to about 116,000 American football fields, 14 times the area of Manhattan, or 8 times the area of Paris.
Beijing, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's most populous national capital city, as well as China's second-largest city by urban area, after Shanghai. It is located in Northern China, and is governed as a municipality under the direct administration of the State Council with 16 urban districts.
Known as "Northern Capital", Beijing covers 16,411 km² with a population of 21.5 million. The city was founded around 1045 BC. Beijing is known for Forbidden City, Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, among other attractions. The city's main transit system is the Beijing Subway.
With over 22 million residents, Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city.
Kyoto, officially Kyoto City , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. As of 2020, the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it the ninth-most populous city in Japan. More than half (56.8%) of Kyoto Prefecture's population resides in the city. The city is the cultural anchor of the substantially larger Greater Kyoto, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) home to a census-estimated 3.8 million people.
Also known as "Thousand-Year Capital", Kyoto has an area of 828 km² and is home to 1.5 million people. Its history stretches back to 794. Visitors come for Fushimi Inari Shrine, Kinkaku-ji Golden Pavilion, Gion geisha district, and much more.
More than half of Kyoto Prefecture's entire population lives within Kyoto City itself.
Beijing has a population density of 1,313 people per km² — a relatively spread-out city. Kyoto, with 1,763 people per km², is a relatively spread-out city. Both cities have comparable density, though Kyoto is slightly more compact.
Size Ratio
Kyoto fits inside Beijing ~19 times
Density Gap
Kyoto is 1.3x more densely populated
History
Beijing is ~1,839 years older
Beijing covers 16,411 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Hangzhou (16,854 km²), Brisbane (15,826 km²), Chengdu (14,378 km²), Sydney (12,368 km²), or Xi'an (10,097 km²).
Kyoto covers 828 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Santiago (838 km²), New York (783 km²), Berlin (892 km²), Hamburg (755 km²), or Bangalore (741 km²).
The straight-line distance from Beijing to Kyoto is 1,789 km (1,112 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~2h 36m.
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