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How the crowd draws

645 drawings of its land border and 691 drawings of its coast, from memory on Borderline’s World map, 17 September 2026 to 27 October 2026.

Draw South Africa

In numbers

Last updated on 27 October 2026
The real oneThe crowd’s
Area1,251,000 km²483,000 sq mi1,249,000 km²482,000 sq mi0.1% smaller
Outline6,499 km4,038 mi6,244 km3,880 mi3.9% shorter
Centre25.27° E, 28.98° S25.3° E, 29.0° S25.38° E, 29.17° S25.4° E, 29.2° S24 km south-east15 mi south-east
Westernmost16.47° E, 28.63° S16.5° E, 28.6° S16.43° E, 28.62° S16.4° E, 28.6° S4 km beyond2 mi beyond
Easternmost32.89° E, 26.86° S32.9° E, 26.9° S32.93° E, 26.83° S32.9° E, 26.8° S4 km beyond3 mi beyond
Southernmost19.99° E, 34.82° S20.0° E, 34.8° S20.06° E, 34.52° S20.1° E, 34.5° S33 km short21 mi short
Northernmost29.66° E, 22.13° S29.7° E, 22.1° S29.86° E, 22.38° S29.9° E, 22.4° S29 km short18 mi short

Near the land border, 57% of the crowd’s lines run inside South Africa. Near the coast, 43% run inland.

Borders and coast

Why two lengths?

A line’s length depends on how closely it is drawn. The game’s lines are simplified: they keep a point every few kilometres and cut across small bends. The official lengths, from the CIA World Factbook, are measured on other lines. A border measured on a finer line, following every bend of its rivers and ridges, comes out longer.

Coasts differ most, and either way. Some official coastlines follow every inlet and island (Canada’s 202,080 km); others are smoothed on purpose, crossing bays and sounds (the United States’ 19,924 km), and can come out shorter than the game’s.

Players draw against the game’s line and are scored against it, so the crowd’s length is compared with the game’s, both measured the same way. Set against an official length measured another way, the comparison would say more about the two methods than about the crowd.

South Africa and Botswana: 1,458 km in the game, 1,969 km officially.

South Africa’s coast: 2,978 km in the game, 2,798 km officially.

5 neighbours
Border withIn the gameThe crowd’s
Botswana1,458 km in the game1,969 km officially1,443 km the crowd’s1.0% shorter
Namibia878 km in the game1,005 km officially812 km the crowd’s7.5% shorter
Mozambique477 km in the game496 km officially483 km the crowd’s1.3% longer
eSwatini419 km in the game438 km officially432 km the crowd’s3.1% longer
Zimbabwe210 km in the game230 km officially189 km the crowd’s10.0% shorter
The coast2,978 km in the game2,798 km officially2,799 km the crowd’s6.0% shorter

How it is measured

The crowd’s South Africa: every few km along the real line, each drawing’s nearest point, inside South Africa or outside it; the median over a short stretch is where the crowd puts the line there, and the real outline moved by it is the crowd’s. Where the move folds a narrow inlet over itself, the loop is cut.

The 1,336 drawings that scored 10 or more on Borderline’s World map, scribbles left out, the real line the game’s own. Area true to scale; the outline copies the real line’s detail, so its length changes only where the shape moves or a loop is cut. The map lays the 1,000 most recent; the heat map, the crowd’s shape and every figure use all 1,336.

Draw South Africa yourself and add your line to the next update.