New York
783 km²
Sydney
12,368 km²
USA
Australia
Area Comparison
New York is 15.8x smaller than Sydney
Population Comparison
New York has 1.6x more people than Sydney
Yes — Sydney is 15.8x larger than New York by area. Sydney spans 12,368 km² (4,775 mi²) while New York covers 783 km² (302 mi²) — a difference of 11,585 km². You could fit New York inside Sydney approximately 15 times.
To put New York's size in perspective, its area of 783 km² is about 1.1x smaller than Berlin. Meanwhile, Sydney at 12,368 km² is about 2.0x the size of Shanghai.
Picture New York another way: its area is large enough to fit about 110,000 American football fields, 13 times the area of Manhattan, or 7 times the area of Paris. Sydney works out to about 1,700,000 American football fields, 120 times the area of Paris, or 100 times the area of San Francisco.
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States. It is located at the southern tip of New York State on New York Harbor, one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive with its respective county. It is the geographical and demographic center of both the Northeast megalopolis and the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the United States by both population and urban area.
Known as "New York City", New York covers 783 km² with a population of 8.3 million. The city was established in 1624. New York is known for Times Square, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, among other attractions. The city's main transit system is the NYC Subway.
New York City sits on one of the world's largest natural harbors, which shaped its rise as America's commercial gateway.
Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and is the most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about 80 kilometres (50 mi) from the Pacific Ocean in the east to the Blue Mountains in the west, and about 80 kilometres (50 mi) from Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park and the Hawkesbury River in the north and north-west, to the Royal National Park and Macarthur in the south and south-west.
Often called "Sydneysiders", Sydney has an area of 12,368 km² and is home to 5.3 million people. Its history stretches back to 1788. Visitors come for Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, Bondi Beach, and much more. Getting around is easy with the Sydney Trains.
Sydney stretches roughly 80 km from the Pacific Ocean in the east to the Blue Mountains in the west.
Looking beyond city limits, the New York metropolitan area covers 17,405 km², which is 1.4x larger than greater Sydney at 12,368 km². The New York metro area is also more populous, with 20.1 million people compared to 5.3 million.
New York has a population density of 10,651 people per km² — an extremely dense urban environment. Sydney, with 429 people per km², is a low-density, sprawling urban area. New York is dramatically more crowded, with 24.8x the population density.
This comparison spans continents — New York in North America versus Sydney in Oceania. 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 Sydney, it's midnight in New York — a 15-hour time difference.
Size Ratio
New York fits inside Sydney ~15 times
Density Gap
New York is 24.8x more densely populated
Time Difference
15 hours apart
History
New York is ~164 years older
New York covers 783 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Hamburg (755 km²), Bangalore (741 km²), Kyoto (828 km²), Singapore (733 km²), or Santiago (838 km²).
Sydney covers 12,368 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Chengdu (14,378 km²), Xi'an (10,097 km²), Melbourne (9,993 km²), Brisbane (15,826 km²), or Beijing (16,411 km²).
The straight-line distance from New York to Sydney is 15,989 km (9,935 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~19h 19m.
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