Houston
1,725 km²
Kuala Lumpur
243 km²
United States
Malaysia
Area Comparison
Houston is 7.1x larger than Kuala Lumpur
Population Comparison
Houston has 1.2x more people than Kuala Lumpur
Yes — Houston is 7.1x larger than Kuala Lumpur by area. Houston spans 1,725 km² (666 mi²) while Kuala Lumpur covers 243 km² (94 mi²) — a difference of 1,482 km². You could fit Kuala Lumpur inside Houston approximately 7 times.
To put Houston's size in perspective, its area of 1,725 km² is roughly the same size as London. Meanwhile, Kuala Lumpur at 243 km² is about 1.1x the size of Amsterdam.
Picture Houston another way: its area is large enough to fit about 242,000 American football fields, 29 times the area of Manhattan, or 16 times the area of Paris. Kuala Lumpur works out to about 34,000 American football fields, 120 times the area of Monaco, or 71 times the area of Central Park.
Houston is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the Southern United States. It is the fourth-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 2.3 million at the 2020 census. The Greater Houston metropolitan area, at 7.8 million residents, is the fifth-most populous metropolitan area in the nation and second-most populous in Texas. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, Houston is the county seat of Harris County.
Known as "Space City", Houston covers 1,725 km² with a population of 2.3 million. The city was established in 1836. Houston is known for NASA Johnson Space Center, Space Center Houston, Houston Astros, among other attractions.
Houston is the fourth-most populous US city with 2.3 million residents at the 2020 census, leading the entire South.
Kuala Lumpur (KL), officially the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, is the capital city and a federal territory of Malaysia. It is the most populous city in the country, covering an area of 243 km2 (94 sq mi) with a population of 2,075,600 as of 2024. Greater Kuala Lumpur, which itself includes the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 8.8 million people as of 2024. It is among the fastest growing metropolitan regions in Southeast Asia, in terms of both population and economic development.
Often called "KL", Kuala Lumpur has an area of 243 km² and is home to 2.0 million people. It was established in 1857. Visitors come for Petronas Twin Towers, Batu Caves, Merdeka 118, and much more. Getting around is easy with the RapidKL (LRT, MRT & Monorail).
Kuala Lumpur packs 2.07 million people into just 243 km2, making it Malaysia's most populous city by far
Houston has a population density of 1,333 people per km² — a relatively spread-out city. Kuala Lumpur, with 8,148 people per km², is a densely populated city. Kuala Lumpur is dramatically more crowded, with 6.1x the population density.
Size Ratio
Kuala Lumpur fits inside Houston ~7 times
Density Gap
Kuala Lumpur is 6.1x more densely populated
Houston covers 1,725 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Riyadh (1,798 km²), Johannesburg (1,644 km²), Bogotá (1,578 km²), London (1,572 km²), or Bangkok (1,569 km²).
Kuala Lumpur covers 243 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Boston (232 km²), Edinburgh (259 km²), Osaka (225 km²), Amsterdam (219 km²), or Taipei (272 km²).
The straight-line distance from Houston to Kuala Lumpur is 15,932 km (9,900 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~19h 15m.
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