A globe cannot lie flat without a trade-off.
A map projection turns positions on a curved Earth into positions on a plane. Stretching, compression or interruption is unavoidable. A world map can preserve area or preserve local angles, but it cannot preserve both everywhere. Nor can one flat map preserve all distances.
Equal Earth is an equal-area, pseudocylindrical projection introduced in 2018 by Bojan Šavrič, Tom Patterson and Bernhard Jenny. Its curved outline suggests a globe; its straight parallels help readers compare latitude. It was designed as an alternative to Gall–Peters, with more familiar-looking continent shapes.
Equal area is a precise promise.
At a common scale, a region occupying twice as much surface area on Earth occupies twice as much area on an Equal Earth map. The property applies everywhere, rather than only at the equator. The outline and shape of a country can change while its relative area stays correct.
For example, Africa is roughly fourteen times the area of Greenland. A flächentreue, or equal-area, projection preserves that relationship. This does not mean that every country looks like a scaled photograph taken from above. Area and shape are different properties.
The little map lab
An area on the move.
Compare the two patches within each panel. Both have equal area on the globe.
What the projection does not promise.
Equal Earth is not conformal: local angles and shapes are not preserved everywhere. It is not equidistant: measuring a line against one scale bar does not give correct distances across the entire map. It does not turn compass bearings into straight routes. Use a globe, suitable regional projection or geodesic calculation when the task requires those properties.
Neither projection choice nor mathematical accuracy settles political boundaries. Labels, colours, selected data and the central meridian are editorial decisions. A map should make those choices and its sources visible.
A good fit for a world on the wall.
Relative area makes Equal Earth useful when comparing the extent of continents or the distribution of land and ocean. It also gives a coherent overview for study and display. To see the trade-off directly, move the latitude control in our comparison tool. Then look at the original map at full detail before deciding whether it suits your task.
