Cairo
3,085 km²
Guangzhou
7,434 km²
Egypt
China
Area Comparison
Cairo is 2.4x smaller than Guangzhou
Population Comparison
Cairo has 1.8x fewer people than Guangzhou
Yes — Guangzhou is 2.4x larger than Cairo by area. Guangzhou spans 7,434 km² (2,870 mi²) while Cairo covers 3,085 km² (1,191 mi²) — a difference of 4,349 km². You could fit Cairo inside Guangzhou approximately 2 times.
To put Cairo's size in perspective, its area of 3,085 km² is about 1.2x the size of Luxembourg. Meanwhile, Guangzhou at 7,434 km² is about 1.2x the size of Shanghai.
Cairo's footprint is roughly about 432,000 American football fields, 52 times the area of Manhattan, or 29 times the area of Paris — pick whichever unit feels intuitive. Guangzhou works out to about 1,000,000 American football fields, 130 times the area of Manhattan, or 71 times the area of Paris.
Cairo is the capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate. It is home to more than 9.8 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world, and the Middle East. The Greater Cairo metropolitan area is one of the largest in the world by population with over 22 million people. Areas of what would become Cairo were inhabited from pre-dynastic and early-dynastic ancient Egypt c.
Known as "The City of a Thousand Minarets", Cairo covers 3,085 km² with a population of 10.1 million. The city was established in 969. Cairo is known for Pyramids of Giza, Great Sphinx, Egyptian Museum, among other attractions. The city's main transit system is the Cairo Metro.
Cairo is home to more than 9.8 million people and is part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa and the Arab world.
Guangzhou, also known as Canton, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong in southern China. Located on the Pearl River, about 120 kilometres (75 mi) northwest of Hong Kong and 145 kilometres (90 mi) north of Macau, Guangzhou has a history of over 2,200 years and was a major terminus of the Silk Road.
Often called "Canton", Guangzhou has an area of 7,434 km² and is home to 18.7 million people. Its history stretches back to 214 BC. Visitors come for Canton Tower, Chen Clan Ancestral Hall, Shamian Island, and much more. Getting around is easy with the Guangzhou Metro.
Guangzhou boasts a history of over 2,200 years and served as a major terminus of the ancient Silk Road
Looking beyond city limits, the Guangzhou metropolitan area covers 7,434 km², which is 1.1x larger than greater Cairo at 6,588 km². The Cairo metro area is also more populous, with 21.3 million people compared to 18.7 million.
Cairo has a population density of 3,274 people per km² — a moderately dense city. Guangzhou, with 2,513 people per km², is a moderately dense city. Both cities have comparable density, though Cairo is slightly more compact.
This comparison spans continents — Cairo in Africa versus Guangzhou in Asia. Despite the geographic distance, comparing their sizes reveals surprising insights about how cities grow worldwide.
Cairo has a hot desert climate while Guangzhou experiences humid subtropical conditions. When it's noon in Guangzhou, it's 6:00 AM in Cairo — a 6-hour time difference.
Size Ratio
Cairo fits inside Guangzhou ~2 times
Density Gap
Cairo is 1.3x more densely populated
Time Difference
6 hours apart
History
Guangzhou is ~1,183 years older
Cairo covers 3,085 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Hanoi (3,359 km²), Karachi (3,527 km²), Lima (2,672 km²), Moscow (2,511 km²), or Cape Town (2,455 km²).
Guangzhou covers 7,434 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Wuhan (8,569 km²), Perth (6,417 km²), Shanghai (6,341 km²), Melbourne (9,993 km²), or Xi'an (10,097 km²).
The straight-line distance from Cairo to Guangzhou is 8,019 km (4,983 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~9h 56m.
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