There are 195 internationally recognized countries in the world today. This includes all 193 UN member states along with two UN observer states.
In addition to the official list, there are a few self-governing territories that often get mentioned in conversations about country status — such as the Cook Islands, Niue, and Kosovo.
These places have varying levels of independence, but are not universally recognized as sovereign countries.
List of country names from A-Z
Here is the alphabetical list of the country names with their capitals. We have also included the countries’ regions, the international standard for country codes (ISO 3166), and continents.
Download: List of countries worldwide.
World map
The world has seven continents: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia (Oceania), North America and South America.
Our printable world maps show the exact locations of each country.
For global comparisons beyond the continental lists, you can also explore rankings of countries by land area and by population.
Country names by continent
Africa (54): Algeria, Angola, Benin (Dahomey), Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Republic of the Congo, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Read more: Countries in Africa
Asia (49): Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Cyprus, Georgia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lebanon, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Mongolia, Nepal, North Korea (Korea, Democratic People’s Republic of), Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea (Republic of Korea), Sri Lanka, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Türkiye (Turkey), Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen.
Read more: Countries in Asia
Australia and Oceania (16): Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu.
Read more: Oceanian Countries
Europe (47): Albania, Andorra, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia (Czech Republic), Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye (Turkey), Ukraine, United Kingdom.
Read more: European Countries
North America (23): Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, United States.
Read more: Countries in North America
South America (12): Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela.
Read more: Countries in South America
Please note that some countries are part of more than one continent. Geographically speaking, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Türkiye (Turkey) are located in two continents: Europe and Asia. Indonesia, while primarily located in Asia, also lies in the Oceanian region. Egypt sits in both Africa and Asia.
Notes and clarifications
The Cook Islands and Niue: While they are self-governing and operating as independent countries, the United Nations does not recognize them as full member states. New Zealand retains responsibility for their defense and foreign affairs.
The US officially recognized and established diplomatic relations with the Cook Islands and Niue as sovereign, independent states in September 2023.
Kosovo: It is recognized by over 100 countries but is not a UN member due to the non-recognition by some countries, including Serbia.
Holy See (Vatican City): It is widely recognized as a sovereign entity, but it is not a full member of the UN.
Palestine: Palestine is recognized as a state by the UN General Assembly and 146 countries worldwide. However, it is not universally recognized as a fully sovereign country.
While we listed 198 countries in the world, this number is up for debate. For further clarification, please read: How many countries are there in the world?
Up next: Country flags around the world
Caitriona Maria is an education writer and owner of The Facts Institute. With seven years of teaching experience and a background in educational content, she specialises in creating clear reference resources about countries, geography and global topics.
Naa-Atswei Mawufemor Lomo is a content writer who contributes educational articles to The Facts Institute. With a background in communication and digital publishing, she specialises in presenting complex information in an accessible and reader-friendly way.