The Great Wall of China is one of the most iconic and impressive structures ever built, but its true scale and significance are hard to wrap your head around. How long is it really? How many people worked on it? Rather than just throwing out numbers, it’s easier to understand the Great Wall by comparing it to things we know better—like cities, landmarks, and even natural wonders. From its massive length to the workforce involved, these comparisons will help you appreciate just how extraordinary this ancient marvel really is.
- The Great Wall of China, stretching for approximately 21,196 kilometers (13,171 miles), is nearly half the length of the European coastline, which spans around 38,000 kilometers (23,612 miles). If the Great Wall were laid out end-to-end across Europe, it would nearly cover the entire coastline, reaching from the northernmost tip of Norway to the southernmost point of Greece, and possibly even extending beyond.
- The 3.9 billion bricks used to construct the wall could circle the Earth’s equator nearly three times if laid end to end.
- The average height of the wall, 6-8 meters (20-26 feet), is about the height of a two-story building, but Mount Everest is about 1,100 times taller.
- The wall took over 2,000 years to build in various stages, while Rome’s Colosseum was completed in just 8 years.
- Contrary to popular belief, the Great Wall is not visible from space with the naked eye, similar to trying to see a highway from orbit, while geographical features like the Amazon River are much more prominent.
- More than a million workers were involved in the construction of the wall—10 times the workforce used to build the Pyramids of Giza.
- The earliest parts of the wall date back to the 7th century BC, making it almost 800 years older than the Colosseum in Rome.
- The width of the wall, ranging between 4.5 to 9 meters (15 to 30 feet), can fit five horse-drawn carriages side by side, whereas the Brooklyn Bridge is only 26 meters (85 feet) wide.
- The Great Wall attracts around 10 million visitors annually, which is more than twice the number of tourists visiting the Taj Mahal.
- Over 30% of the Great Wall has disappeared due to erosion and human activity, which means more has been lost than the total area of Manhattan Island.
