Kuala Lumpur
243 km²
Rio de Janeiro
1,221 km²
Malaysia
Brazil
Area Comparison
Kuala Lumpur is 5.0x smaller than Rio de Janeiro
Population Comparison
Kuala Lumpur has 3.4x fewer people than Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro is significantly larger, covering 5.0 times the area of Kuala Lumpur. Rio de Janeiro spans 1,221 km² (471 mi²) while Kuala Lumpur covers 243 km² (94 mi²) — a difference of 978 km². You could fit Kuala Lumpur inside Rio de Janeiro approximately 5 times.
To put Kuala Lumpur's size in perspective, its area of 243 km² is about 1.1x the size of Amsterdam. Meanwhile, Rio de Janeiro at 1,221 km² is about 1.3x smaller than London.
Picture Kuala Lumpur another way: its area is large enough to fit about 34,000 American football fields, 120 times the area of Monaco, or 71 times the area of Central Park. Rio de Janeiro works out to about 171,000 American football fields, 21 times the area of Manhattan, or 12 times the area of Paris.
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.
Known as "KL", Kuala Lumpur covers 243 km² with a population of 2.0 million. The city was established in 1857. Kuala Lumpur is known for Petronas Twin Towers, Batu Caves, Merdeka 118, among other attractions. The city's main transit system is 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
Rio de Janeiro, also known simply as Rio, is the capital of the state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the second-most-populous city in Brazil after São Paulo and the sixth-most-populous city in the Americas.
Nicknamed "Cidade Maravilhosa", Rio de Janeiro has an area of 1,221 km² and is home to 6.8 million people. The city dates back to 1565. Visitors come for Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf Mountain, Copacabana beach, and much more. Getting around is easy with the MetrôRio.
Rio de Janeiro is the second-most-populous city in Brazil after São Paulo and the sixth-most-populous in the Americas.
Looking beyond city limits, the Rio de Janeiro metropolitan area covers 6,744 km², which is 2.4x larger than greater Kuala Lumpur at 2,793 km². The Rio de Janeiro metro area is also more populous, with 13.5 million people compared to 8.4 million.
Kuala Lumpur has a population density of 8,148 people per km² — a densely populated city. Rio de Janeiro, with 5,528 people per km², is a densely populated city. Both cities have comparable density, though Kuala Lumpur is slightly more compact.
This comparison spans continents — Kuala Lumpur in Asia versus Rio de Janeiro in South America. Despite the geographic distance, comparing their sizes reveals surprising insights about how cities grow worldwide.
Kuala Lumpur has a tropical rainforest climate while Rio de Janeiro experiences tropical savanna conditions. When it's noon in Kuala Lumpur, it's 1:00 AM in Rio de Janeiro — a 11-hour time difference.
Size Ratio
Kuala Lumpur fits inside Rio de Janeiro ~5 times
Density Gap
Kuala Lumpur is 1.5x more densely populated
Time Difference
11 hours apart
History
Rio de Janeiro is ~292 years older
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).
Rio de Janeiro covers 1,221 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include San Antonio (1,209 km²), Lagos (1,172 km²), Rome (1,285 km²), Los Angeles (1,302 km²), or Hong Kong (1,114 km²).
The straight-line distance from Kuala Lumpur to Rio de Janeiro is 15,641 km (9,719 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~18h 54m.
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