Belgium vs Germany

Germany is 12 times larger than Belgium — 357,022 against 30,528 km². Germany is 7.0 times more populous than Belgium — 83,491,249 against 11,941,781 people.

Side by side

Population density

Belgium is 1.7 times more densely populated than Germany — 391 against 234 people per km². Density is where area and population interact, and it often reverses the impression the headline figures give — a large country with a small population can feel emptier than a small crowded one by an enormous margin.

Belgium

One of the most densely populated countries in Europe, and one of the most brightly lit — its motorway lighting was long visible from orbit as a distinct grid. The Signal de Botrange, its highest point, is only 694 m. Antwerp handles the majority of the world's rough diamond trade.

Germany

Germany borders nine countries, more than any other in Europe. The Rhine carries more freight than any other river in Europe. The country has around 25,000 castles and palaces, and the Black Forest and Bavarian Alps mean about a third of it is wooded.

Neutral facts only. Nothing here addresses politics, government, economics or which country is preferable in any respect — population is the one figure that dates, and it carries its year.