Johannesburg
1,644 km²
Xi'an
10,097 km²
South Africa
People's Republic of China
Area Comparison
Johannesburg is 6.1x smaller than Xi'an
Population Comparison
Johannesburg has 2.7x fewer people than Xi'an
Xi'an is significantly larger, covering 6.1 times the area of Johannesburg. Xi'an spans 10,097 km² (3,898 mi²) while Johannesburg covers 1,644 km² (635 mi²) — a difference of 8,453 km². You could fit Johannesburg inside Xi'an approximately 6 times.
To put Johannesburg's size in perspective, its area of 1,644 km² is roughly the same size as London. Meanwhile, Xi'an at 10,097 km² is about 1.6x the size of Shanghai.
Picture Johannesburg another way: its area is large enough to fit about 230,000 American football fields, 28 times the area of Manhattan, or 16 times the area of Paris. For Xi'an, that's about 1,400,000 American football fields, 170 times the area of Manhattan, or 96 times the area of Paris.
Johannesburg, colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg or "The City of Gold", is the most populous city in South Africa. The City of Johannesburg itself has a population of 5,538,596, while the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality has a population of 6,599,190, making it one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, and seat of the country's highest court, the Constitutional Court.
Known as "Jozi", Johannesburg covers 1,644 km² with a population of 4.8 million. The city was established in 1886. Johannesburg is known for Apartheid Museum, Soweto township, Constitutional Court, among other attractions.
Johannesburg ranks among the world's 100 largest urban areas, with a metro population of about 6.6 million.
Xi'an is the capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populous city in Northwestern China. Its total population was 12.95 million in the 2020 census, including an urban population of 9.28 million.
Often called "Ancient Capital", Xi'an has an area of 10,097 km² and is home to 12.9 million people. Visitors come for Terracotta Army, Xi'an City Wall, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, and much more.
Xi'an's 2020 census recorded 12.95 million residents, making it the most populous city in Northwestern China.
Johannesburg has a population density of 2,920 people per km² — a moderately dense city. Xi'an, with 1,283 people per km², is a relatively spread-out city. Johannesburg is noticeably denser, packing 2.3 times more people per square kilometer.
Size Ratio
Johannesburg fits inside Xi'an ~6 times
Density Gap
Johannesburg is 2.3x more densely populated
Johannesburg covers 1,644 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Bogotá (1,578 km²), London (1,572 km²), Bangkok (1,569 km²), Houston (1,725 km²), or São Paulo (1,521 km²).
Xi'an covers 10,097 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Melbourne (9,993 km²), Wuhan (8,569 km²), Sydney (12,368 km²), Guangzhou (7,434 km²), or Chengdu (14,378 km²).
The straight-line distance from Johannesburg to Xi'an is 10,846 km (6,740 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~13h 16m.
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