World Map With Countries and Capitals: Countries, Capitals & Facts

Which country has three capitals? Which capital just changed in 2026? A world map with countries and capitals answers these questions at a glance. It shows every nation, its border, and its seat of government on a single page.

This guide gives you the same picture in text form. You get a continent-wise list of all 195 countries and their capitals, plus the facts students ask about most: how many countries exist, which nations have more than one capital, and which capital city changed just this year. Keep this page open next to the downloadable map PDF below and use both together while you study.

What Is a World Map with Countries and Capitals?

A world map with countries and capitals is a political world map. It shows country borders, not physical features like rivers or mountains. Each country is marked with its name, and its capital city gets a special symbol, usually a star or a dot.

Students use this type of labeled world map for three main reasons:

• To locate a country and its capital quickly during exam prep.

• To understand which countries share a region or continent.

• To connect current affairs news, like a capital city change, to a place on the map.

Download the World Map with Countries and Capitals

Use the downloadable world map with countries and capitals PDF alongside this guide. Print it out or save it on your phone. Every country name and capital city listed below appears on that map, so you can trace each region as you read.

How Many Countries Are There in the World?

The world has 195 countries. This count comes from the United Nations. It includes 193 UN member states and 2 permanent observer states, the Holy See (Vatican City) and the State of Palestine.

Some lists show a different number. That happens when a source counts territories, dependencies, or partially recognised regions. For a standard classroom answer, 195 is the number to use.

How to Read a Political World Map

A political world map follows a few simple rules. Once you know them, any map becomes easy to read:

●        Solid lines mark accepted international borders.

●        Dashed or dotted lines mark disputed borders or ceasefire lines.

●        A star or bold dot marks the capital city, not just any big city.

●        A scale bar at the bottom tells you the real distance between two points.

Every flat map also uses a projection. A projection is just the method used to turn the round Earth into a flat image. The Winkel Tripel projection is the most common one today. The National Geographic Society adopted it in 1998 because it keeps size and shape close to accurate across the whole map.

Countries and Capitals of the World by Continent

Here is the full list of countries and capitals, grouped continent by continent. This is the same structure used on the map, so you can match each row to its region.

Africa (54 countries)

Africa has 54 countries, more than any other continent. Its capitals range from coastal cities like Accra and Dakar to inland capitals like Abuja and Nairobi.

Country	Capital City	Region
Algeria	Algiers	Northern Africa
Angola	Luanda	Middle Africa
Benin	Porto-Novo	Western Africa
Botswana	Gaborone	Southern Africa
Burkina Faso	Ouagadougou	Western Africa
Burundi	Gitega	Eastern Africa
Cameroon	Yaoundé	Middle Africa
Cape Verde	Praia	Western Africa
Central African Republic	Bangui	Middle Africa
Chad	N’Djamena	Middle Africa
Comoros	Moroni	Eastern Africa
Democratic Republic of the Congo	Kinshasa	Middle Africa
Republic of the Congo	Brazzaville	Middle Africa
Djibouti	Djibouti	Eastern Africa
Egypt	Cairo	Northern Africa
Equatorial Guinea	Ciudad de la Paz	Middle Africa
Eritrea	Asmara	Eastern Africa
Eswatini	Mbabane	Southern Africa
Ethiopia	Addis Ababa	Eastern Africa
Gabon	Libreville	Middle Africa
Gambia	Banjul	Western Africa
Ghana	Accra	Western Africa
Guinea	Conakry	Western Africa
Guinea-Bissau	Bissau	Western Africa
Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire)	Yamoussoukro	Western Africa
Kenya	Nairobi	Eastern Africa
Lesotho	Maseru	Southern Africa
Liberia	Monrovia	Western Africa
Libya	Tripoli	Northern Africa
Madagascar	Antananarivo	Eastern Africa
Malawi	Lilongwe	Eastern Africa
Mali	Bamako	Western Africa
Mauritania	Nouakchott	Western Africa
Mauritius	Port Louis	Eastern Africa
Morocco	Rabat	Northern Africa
Mozambique	Maputo	Eastern Africa
Namibia	Windhoek	Southern Africa
Niger	Niamey	Western Africa
Nigeria	Abuja	Western Africa
Rwanda	Kigali	Eastern Africa
São Tomé and Príncipe	São Tomé	Middle Africa
Senegal	Dakar	Western Africa
Seychelles	Victoria	Eastern Africa
Sierra Leone	Freetown	Western Africa
Somalia	Mogadishu	Eastern Africa
South Africa	Pretoria	Southern Africa
South Sudan	Juba	Eastern Africa
Sudan	Khartoum	Northern Africa
Tanzania	Dodoma	Eastern Africa
Togo	Lomé	Western Africa
Tunisia	Tunis	Northern Africa
Uganda	Kampala	Eastern Africa
Zambia	Lusaka	Eastern Africa
Zimbabwe	Harare	Eastern Africa

Asia (48 countries)

Asia is the largest continent, home to 48 countries and nearly half the world’s population. Its capitals include ancient cities like Beijing and modern planned capitals like Nusantara.

Country	Capital City	Region
Afghanistan	Kabul	Southern Asia
Armenia	Yerevan	Western Asia
Azerbaijan	Baku	Western Asia
Bahrain	Manama	Western Asia
Bangladesh	Dhaka	Southern Asia
Bhutan	Thimphu	Southern Asia
Brunei	Bandar Seri Begawan	South-eastern Asia
Cambodia	Phnom Penh	South-eastern Asia
China	Beijing	Eastern Asia
Cyprus	Nicosia	Western Asia
Georgia	Tbilisi	Western Asia
India	New Delhi	Southern Asia
Indonesia	Nusantara	South-eastern Asia
Iran	Tehran	Southern Asia
Iraq	Baghdad	Western Asia
Israel	Jerusalem	Western Asia
Japan	Tokyo	Eastern Asia
Jordan	Amman	Western Asia
Kazakhstan	Astana	Central Asia
Kuwait	Kuwait City	Western Asia
Kyrgyzstan	Bishkek	Central Asia
Laos	Vientiane	South-eastern Asia
Lebanon	Beirut	Western Asia
Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur	South-eastern Asia
Maldives	Malé	Southern Asia
Mongolia	Ulaanbaatar	Eastern Asia
Myanmar	Naypyidaw	South-eastern Asia
Nepal	Kathmandu	Southern Asia
North Korea	Pyongyang	Eastern Asia
Oman	Muscat	Western Asia
Pakistan	Islamabad	Southern Asia
Palestine	Jerusalem	Western Asia
Philippines	Manila	South-eastern Asia
Qatar	Doha	Western Asia
Saudi Arabia	Riyadh	Western Asia
Singapore	Singapore	South-eastern Asia
South Korea	Seoul	Eastern Asia
Sri Lanka	Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte	Southern Asia
Syria	Damascus	Western Asia
Tajikistan	Dushanbe	Central Asia
Thailand	Bangkok	South-eastern Asia
Timor-Leste	Dili	South-eastern Asia
Turkey	Ankara	Western Asia
Turkmenistan	Ashgabat	Central Asia
United Arab Emirates	Abu Dhabi	Western Asia
Uzbekistan	Tashkent	Central Asia
Vietnam	Hanoi	South-eastern Asia
Yemen	Sana’a	Western Asia

Europe (44 countries)

Europe has 44 countries packed into a relatively small area. Many of its capitals, like Paris and Rome, have served as centres of power for centuries.

Country	Capital City	Region
Albania	Tirana	Southern Europe
Andorra	Andorra la Vella	Southern Europe
Austria	Vienna	Western Europe
Belarus	Minsk	Eastern Europe
Belgium	Brussels	Western Europe
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Sarajevo	Southern Europe
Bulgaria	Sofia	Eastern Europe
Croatia	Zagreb	Southern Europe
Czechia	Prague	Eastern Europe
Denmark	Copenhagen	Northern Europe
Estonia	Tallinn	Northern Europe
Finland	Helsinki	Northern Europe
France	Paris	Western Europe
Germany	Berlin	Western Europe
Greece	Athens	Southern Europe
Hungary	Budapest	Eastern Europe
Iceland	Reykjavík	Northern Europe
Ireland	Dublin	Northern Europe
Italy	Rome	Southern Europe
Latvia	Riga	Northern Europe
Liechtenstein	Vaduz	Western Europe
Lithuania	Vilnius	Northern Europe
Luxembourg	Luxembourg	Western Europe
Malta	Valletta	Southern Europe
Moldova	Chișinău	Eastern Europe
Monaco	Monaco	Western Europe
Montenegro	Podgorica	Southern Europe
Netherlands	Amsterdam	Western Europe
North Macedonia	Skopje	Southern Europe
Norway	Oslo	Northern Europe
Poland	Warsaw	Eastern Europe
Portugal	Lisbon	Southern Europe
Romania	Bucharest	Eastern Europe
Russia	Moscow	Eastern Europe
San Marino	San Marino	Southern Europe
Serbia	Belgrade	Southern Europe
Slovakia	Bratislava	Eastern Europe
Slovenia	Ljubljana	Southern Europe
Spain	Madrid	Southern Europe
Sweden	Stockholm	Northern Europe
Switzerland	Bern	Western Europe
Ukraine	Kyiv	Eastern Europe
United Kingdom	London	Northern Europe
Vatican City	Vatican City	Southern Europe

North America (23 countries)

North America covers 23 countries, most of them island nations in the Caribbean. Capitals here range from major global cities like Washington, D.C. to small island towns.

Country	Capital City	Region
Antigua and Barbuda	Saint John’s	Caribbean
Bahamas	Nassau	Caribbean
Barbados	Bridgetown	Caribbean
Belize	Belmopan	Central America
Canada	Ottawa	Northern America
Costa Rica	San José	Central America
Cuba	Havana	Caribbean
Dominica	Roseau	Caribbean
Dominican Republic	Santo Domingo	Caribbean
El Salvador	San Salvador	Central America
Grenada	St. George’s	Caribbean
Guatemala	Guatemala City	Central America
Haiti	Port-au-Prince	Caribbean
Honduras	Tegucigalpa	Central America
Jamaica	Kingston	Caribbean
Mexico	Mexico City	Central America
Nicaragua	Managua	Central America
Panama	Panama City	Central America
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Basseterre	Caribbean
Saint Lucia	Castries	Caribbean
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Kingstown	Caribbean
Trinidad and Tobago	Port of Spain	Caribbean
United States	Washington, D.C.	Northern America

South America (12 countries)

South America has 12 countries, and most capitals sit either on the coast or high in the Andes. Brasília and La Paz stand out as planned or high-altitude capitals.

Country	Capital City	Region
Argentina	Buenos Aires	South America
Bolivia	Sucre	South America
Brazil	Brasília	South America
Chile	Santiago	South America
Colombia	Bogotá	South America
Ecuador	Quito	South America
Guyana	Georgetown	South America
Paraguay	Asunción	South America
Peru	Lima	South America
Suriname	Paramaribo	South America
Uruguay	Montevideo	South America
Venezuela	Caracas	South America

Oceania (14 countries)

Oceania spans 14 countries scattered across the Pacific. Many capitals here are small island towns, a contrast to the sprawling capitals of larger continents.

Country	Capital City	Region
Australia	Canberra	Australia and New Zealand
Fiji	Suva	Melanesia
Kiribati	Tarawa	Micronesia
Marshall Islands	Majuro	Micronesia
Micronesia	Palikir	Micronesia
Nauru	Yaren (de facto)	Micronesia
New Zealand	Wellington	Australia and New Zealand
Palau	Ngerulmud	Micronesia
Papua New Guinea	Port Moresby	Melanesia
Samoa	Apia	Polynesia
Solomon Islands	Honiara	Melanesia
Tonga	Nukuʻalofa	Polynesia
Tuvalu	Funafuti	Polynesia
Vanuatu	Port Vila	Melanesia

Countries With More Than One Capital

Most countries have one capital. A small number split government functions across two or three cities. This usually happens for historical or political reasons, not because the country lacks a clear centre.

Country	Capitals	Why It Has More Than One
South Africa	Pretoria (executive), Cape Town (legislative), Bloemfontein (judicial)	Agreed at the 1910 Union of South Africa to balance regional interests
Bolivia	Sucre (constitutional, judicial), La Paz (executive, legislative)	Compromise after the 1899 civil conflict
Netherlands	Amsterdam (constitutional capital), The Hague (seat of government)	Amsterdam holds the title; The Hague holds parliament and the courts
Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur (official), Putrajaya (administrative)	Putrajaya was built to ease congestion in Kuala Lumpur
Sri Lanka	Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte (legislative), Colombo (executive, commercial)	Government functions moved out of the crowded commercial capital
Eswatini	Mbabane (administrative), Lobamba (royal, legislative)	Traditional royal seat kept separate from the administrative seat

Around 15 countries follow this split-capital model in some form. If you remember these six, you can answer most exam questions on this topic.

Equatorial Guinea’s New Capital: A 2026 Update

This is the most current change on the world map. On January 2, 2026, Equatorial Guinea officially moved its capital from Malabo to Ciudad de la Paz. Law No. 4/2026 confirmed the move that April.

Malabo sits on Bioko Island, cut off from most of the country’s population on the mainland. Ciudad de la Paz sits inland in Djibloho Province, close to the border with Gabon. The government built the new city to fix that disconnect and to ease crowding in Malabo. The move is happening in phases, and Malabo still works as the country’s main port and commercial hub.

Update this fact whenever you check a world map dated before 2026. It will still show Malabo as the capital.

World’s Biggest and Smallest Capital Cities

Tokyo, Japan: The Greater Tokyo Area holds around 37 to 41 million people. It is the largest capital region on Earth.

Delhi (NCT), India: The National Capital Region holds close to 37 million people, the second largest capital region in the world.

Vatican City: This is the smallest sovereign state in the world, at just 0.49 square kilometres, and it sits inside Rome.

Fun Facts to Remember

• Russia is home to some of the world’s largest forests, including vast stretches of the Siberian taiga.

• Nepal has the only non-rectangular national flag in the world. Its shape comes from two stacked triangular pennants.

• New Delhi became India’s capital in 1911, replacing Kolkata, and was formally inaugurated in 1931.

• Indonesia is shifting its capital from Jakarta to the new planned city of Nusantara.

• Brasília, Brazil’s capital, was built from scratch and opened in 1960 as a planned city.

End Note

A world map with countries and capitals is one of the most useful tools you can keep on hand as a student. It ties together geography, current affairs, and general knowledge in one visual.

Use the continent-wise tables here for quick revision, keep the downloadable map PDF for visual reference, and check back on updates like the Equatorial Guinea capital change so your knowledge stays current.

Pranjal Kharche

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the capital of India?

New Delhi is the capital of India. It has held that title since 1911, when the British moved the capital there from Kolkata.

2. Which country has the largest capital city?

Tokyo, the capital of Japan, has the largest capital city by population. Its metro area holds close to 40 million people.

3. What is the smallest country in the world?

Vatican City is the smallest country in the world by both land area and population. It sits inside Rome, Italy.

4. What is the difference between a country and a capital?

A country is an independent nation with its own government and borders. A capital is the specific city inside that country where the national government sits.