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Countries & Capitals of the World

All 195 UN-recognised countries with their capital cities. Search, filter by continent, or test yourself in quiz mode.

195 countries
# Country Capital Continent

Countries and Capitals of the World

The world currently comprises 195 countries recognised by the United Nations, of which 193 are full member states and 2 (Vatican City and Palestine) hold permanent observer status. The concept of capitals as primary seats of government evolved through centuries of political history - some capitals were chosen for geographic centrality, others for historical significance, and some through deliberate post-independence decisions. India's capital New Delhi was officially designated in 1911 when the British colonial government shifted the capital from Calcutta (now Kolkata) to a newly planned city adjacent to the historic Delhi.

Importance for Indian Competitive Exams

Countries and capitals is among the highest-frequency general knowledge topics in Indian competitive examinations. UPSC Civil Services Prelims, SSC CGL, SSC CHSL, RBI Grade B, IBPS PO, NDA, CDS, and state-level PSC exams regularly include questions about world capitals, particularly when countries change capitals or rename cities. Naypyidaw replaced Yangon as Myanmar's capital in 2006, Nur-Sultan (now Astana) replaced Almaty as Kazakhstan's capital in 1997, and Jakarta is being replaced by Nusantara as Indonesia's capital - all high-frequency exam questions.

Search, Filter, and Quiz Features

This tool lists all 195 internationally recognised countries with their capital cities, organised by continent. The search function allows users to find any country or capital instantly, while the quiz mode helps students test their knowledge interactively - an effective revision method supported by active recall principles in cognitive science. Geography students preparing for CBSE Board exams, teachers creating quiz material, and trivia enthusiasts will all find this comprehensive, filterable reference useful for quick lookup and systematic study.

Countries & Capitals Questions

There are 195 internationally recognised sovereign states: 193 UN member states plus Vatican City and Palestine (both hold UN permanent observer status). Some territories like Kosovo (recognised by ~100 countries) and Taiwan (recognised by ~12 countries) are disputed. India is one of 193 UN member states. The UN was founded in 1945 with just 51 member states - the number has grown as colonial territories gained independence, particularly in Asia and Africa during the 1950s–1970s.

Africa has the most countries - 54, followed by Asia (48), Europe (44), North America (23 including Caribbean islands), Oceania (14) and South America (12). Africa's high country count is partly a result of colonial-era borders that divided the continent into many separate states after independence movements of the 1950s–1970s. By contrast, South America has only 12 countries despite being a large continent - reflecting its history of fewer, larger colonial territories.

A capital city is the official seat of government - where the parliament, presidential palace and major ministries are located. It is not necessarily the largest city. Examples: India's capital is New Delhi but Mumbai is the largest city. Australia's capital is Canberra but Sydney is larger. Brazil's capital is Brasília (a planned city built in 1960) but São Paulo is the largest. The USA's capital is Washington D.C. but New York is the largest. This pattern of separate capital and largest city is very common globally.

Vatican City is both the smallest country by area (~0.44 km²) and by population (~800 residents). It is an independent city-state enclosed within Rome, Italy, and serves as the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church. The second smallest is Monaco (2.02 km²). Among Asian countries, the Maldives is the smallest at 298 km². For comparison, India's smallest state by area is Goa at 3,702 km² - larger than many countries on the list.

Russia is the largest country at approximately 17.1 million km² - nearly twice the area of Canada. Top 5 by area: Russia (17.1M km²), Canada (10.0M km²), China (9.6M km²), USA (9.4M km²), Brazil (8.5M km²). India is the 7th largest at 3.29 million km². Despite being 7th in area, India is the world's most populous country (surpassed China in 2023), with over 1.44 billion people - demonstrating India's extremely high population density of ~464 people per km².
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