Okinawa Main Island covers 1,208.5 km² (466.6 sq mi) of land and had a population of 1.4 million in 2025, about 1,120 people per km² (2,900 per sq mi). In more familiar terms, it is about 1.55 times the size of New York City.
The closest rung on the US reference ladder (Census Bureau land area); see the sources below.
Land per resident
893 m² of land per resident
The inverse of population density, from the same area and population figures.
The outline is fitted to this frame, not a map for measuring distances. Outlying islands may make the main landmass appear smaller.
Change the yardstick
Okinawa Main Island is “how many times” what?
The multiples on this site default to Taiwan. Pick a place you know and the area, population and density are recalculated against it; your choice is remembered in this browser and carries to other pages.
The main island of Okinawa, not the whole prefecture. Area is the island's own coastline, so bridge-connected satellites such as Yagaji, Henza and Sesoko are counted separately by the mapping authority. The prefectural population survey does the opposite: it reports only islands not linked by bridge, so those satellites are folded into this figure. The density shown is therefore about 2% high; a like-for-like denominator would be roughly 1,237 km². The count is the resident register, which includes foreign residents but not US military personnel stationed on the island.
Average administrative density does not describe population distribution in every neighborhood. Compare population definitions and reference dates alongside the numbers.
Place guide
How should this Okinawa Main Island profile be read?
This page covers Okinawa Main Island itself, with an area of 1,208.49 km² measured along the island’s own coastline as of 2026-04-01 and a population of 1,352,975 as of 2025-01-01. Okinawa Prefecture, already on this site, is the wider unit.
Area and population disagree about the bridge islands
The mapping authority counts Yagaji, Henza, Miyagi, Kouri, Sesoko, Hamahiga and Ikei as separate islands, so they sit outside the 1,208.49 km². The prefectural population survey reports separately only those islands not linked by bridge, so the residents of those same satellites are folded into the population shown here.
The two definitions therefore move in opposite directions, and the displayed density comes out about 2% high. A like-for-like denominator would be roughly 1,237 km². The area date and the population date are also 15 months apart.
Island against prefecture
Okinawa Prefecture is 2,282.11 km² with 1,467,065 people. The main island is therefore a little over half the prefecture’s land but holds most of its people, which is why the two pages produce very different densities.
Neither level is more correct than the other. The prefecture page answers an administrative question, and this page answers a single-island one, so the choice should follow the question being asked.
Questions people ask
About Okinawa Main Island’s area and population
How big is Okinawa Main Island?
Okinawa Main Island covers 1,208.5 km², or 466.6 sq mi (reference date 2026-04-01). In US terms: ≈ 1.55 × New York City.
What is the population of Okinawa Main Island?
1.4 million — 1,352,975 as of 2025-01-01. The scope of that count is set out under “Scope and definitions” on this page.
What is the population density of Okinawa Main Island?
About 1,119.6 people per km² (2,900 per sq mi), derived from the area and population above, whose reference dates may differ. An administrative average does not describe how crowded any particular neighbourhood is.
What do these Okinawa Main Island figures include?
The main island of Okinawa, not the whole prefecture. Area is the island's own coastline, so bridge-connected satellites such as Yagaji, Henza and Sesoko are counted separately by the mapping authority. The prefectural population survey does the opposite: it reports only islands not linked by bridge, so those satellites are folded into this figure. The density shown is therefore about 2% high; a like-for-like denominator would be roughly 1,237 km². The count is the resident register, which includes foreign residents but not US military personnel stationed on the island.