Rio de Janeiro
1,221 km²
Santiago
838 km²
Brazil
Chile
Area Comparison
Rio de Janeiro is 1.5x larger than Santiago
Population Comparison
Rio de Janeiro has 1.1x more people than Santiago
Rio de Janeiro is significantly larger, covering 1.5 times the area of Santiago. Rio de Janeiro spans 1,221 km² (471 mi²) while Santiago covers 838 km² (324 mi²) — a difference of 383 km².
To put Rio de Janeiro's size in perspective, its area of 1,221 km² is about 1.3x smaller than London. Meanwhile, Santiago at 838 km² is roughly the same size as Berlin.
In more relatable units, Rio de Janeiro's 1,221 km² is about 171,000 American football fields, 21 times the area of Manhattan, or 12 times the area of Paris. For Santiago, that's about 117,000 American football fields, 14 times the area of Manhattan, or 8 times the area of Paris.
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.
Known as "Cidade Maravilhosa", Rio de Janeiro covers 1,221 km² with a population of 6.8 million. The city was established in 1565. Rio de Janeiro is known for Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf Mountain, Copacabana beach, among other attractions. The city's main transit system is the MetrôRio.
Rio de Janeiro is the second-most-populous city in Brazil after São Paulo and the sixth-most-populous in the Americas.
Santiago, also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. Located in the Chilean Central Valley within the Santiago Basin, between the Andes to the east and the Chilean Coastal Range to the west, it anchors the Santiago Metropolitan Region and its conurbation of Greater Santiago, which comprises more than forty communes and concentrates over a third of the national population and around 45% of Chile's GDP.
Often called "Santiago de Chile", Santiago has an area of 838 km² and is home to 6.3 million people. Its history stretches back to 1541. Visitors come for Cerro San Cristóbal, Gran Torre Santiago, Plaza de Armas, and much more.
Santiago sits in the Chilean Central Valley between the Andes and the Coastal Range, anchoring over a third of Chile's population.
Rio de Janeiro has a population density of 5,528 people per km² — a densely populated city. Santiago, with 7,470 people per km², is a densely populated city. Both cities have comparable density, though Santiago is slightly more compact.
Density Gap
Santiago is 1.4x more densely populated
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).
Santiago covers 838 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Kyoto (828 km²), Berlin (892 km²), New York (783 km²), Hamburg (755 km²), or Bangalore (741 km²).
The straight-line distance from Rio de Janeiro to Santiago is 2,925 km (1,818 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~3h 56m.
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