Compare --- to or with?

The use of to or with with compare is a subtle question. In A Guide to English Language Usage I write

compare

When things are compared to show that they are similar, use the preposition to: He compared the colour of her eyes to the colour of the sky; Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? (Shakespeare, sonnet 18).

When things are compared in order to analyse their similarities and differences, use to or with:

The quality’s poor compared to/with what it used to be.

When I compared John’s story with Jane’s, I found considerable differences.

A comparison of John’s story with Jane’s revealed considerable differences.

With is generally used when the comparison involves a formal analysis of a number of things.

Glossophilia goes into the matter more deeply here.

Comments

[plumbing supplies]

To “compare to” is to suggest resemblances between things that have essentially different natures. To “compare with” is to suggest resemblances between things that have essentially similar natures.

[nature sounds]

life has been compared to a pilgrimage, to a drama, to a battle; Congress may be compared with the British Parliament. Paris has been compared to ancient Athens; it may be compared with modern London.