Buenos Aires
203 km²
Shenzhen
1,997 km²
Argentina
China
Area Comparison
Buenos Aires is 9.8x smaller than Shenzhen
Population Comparison
Buenos Aires has 5.7x fewer people than Shenzhen
Shenzhen is significantly larger, covering 9.8 times the area of Buenos Aires. Shenzhen spans 1,997 km² (771 mi²) while Buenos Aires covers 203 km² (78 mi²) — a difference of 1,794 km². You could fit Buenos Aires inside Shenzhen approximately 9 times.
To put Buenos Aires's size in perspective, its area of 203 km² is roughly the same size as Amsterdam. Meanwhile, Shenzhen at 1,997 km² is roughly the same size as Tokyo (city proper).
Buenos Aires's footprint is roughly about 28,000 American football fields, 100 times the area of Monaco, or 60 times the area of Central Park — pick whichever unit feels intuitive. Shenzhen, by comparison, equals about 280,000 American football fields, 34 times the area of Manhattan, or 19 times the area of Paris.
Buenos Aires, officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− global city, according to the GaWC 2024 ranking. The city proper has a population of 3.1 million and its urban area has a population of 16.7 million, making it the 21st most populous metropolitan area in the world.
Known as "Paris of South America", Buenos Aires covers 203 km² with a population of 3.1 million. The city was established in 1536. Buenos Aires is known for La Boca's Caminito, Recoleta Cemetery, Teatro Colón, among other attractions. The city's main transit system is the Buenos Aires Subte.
Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− global city according to the GaWC 2024 ranking.
Shenzhen is a prefecture-level city in the province of Guangdong, China. A special economic zone, it is located on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of Guangdong, bordering Hong Kong to the south, Dongguan to the north, Huizhou to the northeast, and Macau to the southwest. With a population of 17.5 million in 2020, Shenzhen is the third-most-populous city by urban population in China after Shanghai and Beijing.
Nicknamed "China's Silicon Valley", Shenzhen has an area of 1,997 km² and is home to 17.6 million people. The city dates back to 1979. Visitors come for Ping An Finance Centre, Window of the World, OCT Loft, and much more. Getting around is easy with the Shenzhen Metro.
Shenzhen grew from a small town into China's third-most-populous urban city, hitting 17.5 million residents by 2020
Looking beyond city limits, the Buenos Aires metropolitan area covers 4,758 km², which is 2.4x larger than greater Shenzhen at 1,997 km². The Shenzhen metro area is also more populous, with 17.6 million people compared to 15.2 million.
Buenos Aires has a population density of 15,074 people per km² — an extremely dense urban environment. Shenzhen, with 8,793 people per km², is a densely populated city. Buenos Aires is noticeably denser, packing 1.7 times more people per square kilometer.
This comparison spans continents — Buenos Aires in South America versus Shenzhen in Asia. Despite the geographic distance, comparing their sizes reveals surprising insights about how cities grow worldwide.
Both cities share a humid subtropical climate, though local geography creates distinct microclimates in each. When it's noon in Shenzhen, it's 1:00 AM in Buenos Aires — a 11-hour time difference.
Size Ratio
Buenos Aires fits inside Shenzhen ~9 times
Density Gap
Buenos Aires is 1.7x more densely populated
Time Difference
11 hours apart
History
Buenos Aires is ~443 years older
Buenos Aires covers 203 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Helsinki (214 km²), Amsterdam (219 km²), Stockholm (188 km²), Osaka (225 km²), or Boston (232 km²).
Shenzhen covers 1,997 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Ho Chi Minh City (2,061 km²), Tokyo (2,194 km²), Riyadh (1,798 km²), Houston (1,725 km²), or Johannesburg (1,644 km²).
The straight-line distance from Buenos Aires to Shenzhen is 18,486 km (11,486 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~22h 15m.
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