Place comparison

Ishigaki Island compared with Penghu: area, population and density

Ishigaki Island has more land than Penghu County but fewer registered Japanese-national residents than Penghu’s registered population.

Place A Grouped by country or region Place B Grouped by country or region

Equal-area outline comparison

Outlines are centered and scaled by official land area; position does not show geographic location.

Area

Population

Population density

Area data date

Population data date

The guide below belongs to this pair: Ishigaki Island and Penghu County. Change the selector above and the page follows, so the reading always matches the tool.

Direct answer

How different are Ishigaki Island and Penghu County?

Ishigaki Island covers 222.2 km² (85.8 sq mi); Ishigaki Island's area is 1.74 times Penghu County's. Its reported population is 49,387; Ishigaki Island's population is about 45.8% of Penghu County's. By average density, Ishigaki Island's population density is about 26.4% of Penghu County's.

Area difference

Ishigaki Island's area is 1.74 times Penghu County's 222.2 km² (85.8 sq mi) · 128 km² (49.4 sq mi)

Population difference

Ishigaki Island's population is about 45.8% of Penghu County's 49,387 · 107,901

Density difference

Ishigaki Island's population density is about 26.4% of Penghu County's 222.2 /km² (576 /sq mi) · 843.2 /km² (2,184 /sq mi)

Full data and sources for each place: Ishigaki Island area & population, Penghu County area & population

Straight-line distance between geometric centres: about 485 km; time difference: 1 hour.

On a familiar scale

Ishigaki Island ≈ 1.4 × Washington, D.C. (reference rung) 4,500 m² of land per resident
Penghu County ≈ 81% of Washington, D.C. (reference rung) 1,186 m² of land per resident

Reference scales come from U.S. Census Bureau: 2025 Gazetteer Files: land area of states and counties , as of 2025-01-01.

How to read it

The Ishigaki area and outline cover the island only. The population source excludes foreign residents; the comparison does not use Ishigaki City’s wider administrative area.

Geography and shape

Ishigaki is a single mountainous island, whereas Penghu County distributes its land among an archipelago of 90 islands. Ishigaki’s larger land area is therefore more geographically continuous than Penghu’s county total.

Population context

The Ishigaki figure records fewer residents across a larger island, resulting in a much lower reported density than Penghu County. It also excludes foreign residents, so it should not be interpreted as a complete count of every person living on Ishigaki.

Boundaries and definitions

The area and outline represent Ishigaki Island, not Ishigaki City’s full administrative territory, which includes the Senkaku Islands. Its population source counts registered Japanese nationals. Penghu represents the complete county archipelago and registered year-end population.

Ishigaki Island: Ishigaki Island only. Population is the registered Japanese-national population and excludes foreign residents. This does not use Ishigaki City's wider administrative area, which includes the Senkaku Islands.

Penghu County: The full Penghu County archipelago: 90 islands in the county inventory. Population is the registered year-end total; the area figure is the current official inventory accessed September 4, 2026.

In-depth guide

How should Ishigaki Island and Penghu County be understood in context?

Ishigaki Island has more land than the full Penghu County archipelago, yet its reported population is lower. The comparison is valuable because it exposes two common data traps at once: city boundaries that exceed the named island and population counts that exclude foreign residents.

Ishigaki Island is not Ishigaki City

The outline and area on this page represent Ishigaki Island. Ishigaki City governs a wider administrative territory, including remote islands that are not part of the island outline. Using the city area with the island shape would mix two geographic objects.

Penghu is intentionally different: it uses the whole county archipelago. That asymmetry is acceptable when it is visible, because many real questions compare a familiar administration with a named island. It becomes misleading only when the boundary is hidden.

The population figure needs special care

The available island-level source counts registered Japanese nationals and excludes foreign residents. It is therefore not a complete total of everyone living on Ishigaki. Penghu uses registered population under Taiwan’s household-registration system.

The reported density follows those definitions. It remains useful for an approximate settlement-scale comparison, but any precise quotation should retain the note that the two population systems differ.

What the larger land area does not imply

A larger island does not automatically mean more attractions, residents, roads or usable land. Ishigaki includes mountainous and less settled areas, while Penghu’s county total is distributed among many islands. The shape and distribution matter alongside the total.

For travel, this page is a mental scale rather than an itinerary calculator. Road time, ferry dependence and the location of settlements require local maps and schedules that change more often than geographic area.

Questions people ask

About this geographic comparison

Which is bigger, Ishigaki Island or Penghu County?

Ishigaki Island is bigger, with a land area about 1.74× that of Penghu County (Ishigaki Island 222.2 vs Penghu County 128 km², or 85.8 sq mi vs 49.4 sq mi).

How big is Ishigaki Island compared to Penghu County?

Ishigaki Island has 222.2 km² (85.8 sq mi) and Penghu County has 128 km² (49.4 sq mi): the ratio is 1.74×. Conversely, Penghu County has 57.6% of Ishigaki Island's area.

Does Ishigaki Island or Penghu County have more people?

Penghu County has 107,901 people (2024-12-31), versus 49,387 in Ishigaki Island (2024-01-01): 2.18×. In reverse, Ishigaki Island has 45.8% of Penghu County's population. Ishigaki Island is 1.74× the size of Penghu County — 222.2 km² vs 128 km² (85.8 sq mi vs 49.4 sq mi). Population is 45.8% as high; average density is 26.4% as high. Each side’s scope and reference date are set out under “Boundaries and definitions” on this page.

Is Ishigaki Island bigger than Penghu County?

Yes. Ishigaki Island is bigger, with a land area about 1.74× that of Penghu County (Ishigaki Island 222.2 vs Penghu County 128 km², or 85.8 sq mi vs 49.4 sq mi). The area difference is 94.3 km². Ishigaki Island has 222.2 km² (85.8 sq mi) and Penghu County has 128 km² (49.4 sq mi): the ratio is 1.74×. Conversely, Penghu County has 57.6% of Ishigaki Island's area.

How many times does Penghu County fit into Ishigaki Island?

By land area, Penghu County fits into Ishigaki Island about 1.74 times (222.2 km² vs 128 km², or 85.8 sq mi vs 49.4 sq mi). It is an area ratio, not a jigsaw fit: coastlines and shapes differ, which the outlines on this page show at one scale.

Is Ishigaki Island larger than Penghu?

Yes by land area when Ishigaki Island is compared with the full Penghu County archipelago. Ishigaki Island is 1.74× the size of Penghu County — 222.2 km² vs 128 km² (85.8 sq mi vs 49.4 sq mi).

Does the Ishigaki population include foreign residents?

No. The available island-level source is the registered Japanese-national population, so foreign residents are excluded.

Why not use the area of Ishigaki City?

Ishigaki City’s administrative territory extends beyond Ishigaki Island. Using the island outline and island area keeps the geographic object consistent with the page title.

Sources

Outline data: