MAP SCALE:
1:10,000 - Highly detailed, this scale is primarily used for small cities
or parts of larger cities. You might expect a map at this scale to show
buildings and public facilities as well as roads
1:25,000 - Still very detailed, this scale is commonly used for larger cities.
A City map at this scale would probably only show roads and maybe the larger
public facilities. For topographic (hiking) maps you should see campgrounds
and bends in trails.
1:50,000 - Only the very largest cities in the world would be mapped at this scale.
Names of smaller thoroughfares may or may not be listed. This is the smallest scale
suitable for a topographic (hiking) map.
1:100,000 - This is a reasonable scale to cover a country area to show lakes, rivers,
streams, country roads, and parks with a fair degree of detail. On most maps you
can see streets in a city though these would not be named.
1:250,000 - Detail streets are not shown in cities at this scale, though highways and
country roads are almost always identified.
1:500,000 - A smaller country such as Ireland might be mapped at this scale.
1:1,000,000 - A medium-sized country such as France might be mapped at this scale.
1:2,000,000 - Larger countries such as China or Brazil might be mapped at this scale.
1:10,000,000 - Typically used for maps of continents.
1:25,000,000 - Typically world wall maps at this scale.