So just how big is Peru? It’s a good question, especially if you’re about to go traveling in Peru. Knowing what kind of scale you’re looking at, especially compared with your home country, gives you a better idea of how long you might need to explore the country, and how long it will take you to get from A to B.

How Big is Peru in Miles and Kilometers?

Peru has a total area of 496,225 square miles, or 1,285,216 square kilometers. That puts Peru at number 20 in the list of the world’s countries by area, just below Iran and Mongolia and just above Chad and Niger.

Peru’s coastline, running roughly north to south, stretches for 1,500 miles (2,414 km).

Size of Peru Compared to Other Countries and US States

Peru is the third largest country in South America, behind Brazil (3,287,956 square miles) and Argentina (1,073,500 square miles). The United States — the world’s third or fourth largest country depending on the numbers you use — is about 7.1 times larger than Peru.

When compared to US states, Peru is slightly smaller than Alaska but almost twice as big as Texas. Peru is about three times the size of California, while the state of New York would fit into Peru at least nine times.

In Europe, major nations such as Germany, France, Spain and the UK are all smaller than Peru, but all have significantly larger populations. The Loreto Region of northeastern Peru (capital Iquitos) is the largest region in Peru. With a total area of 142,414 square miles, Loreto is slightly larger than Germany. This sparsely populated Amazonian region, however, has a population of about one million, compared to Germany’s 82 million.

You can see visual Peru size comparisons in the gallery below. Click on any image to expand it.