How Many Countries Are There in the World?

193, 195 or 197: what each count includes, checked in October 2026, and the full list of all 197.

By Ziga StrausUpdated 22 Oct 2026 · 3 min read

A vintage globe on a wooden stand, lit by warm light.
Photo: Amar Preciado, Pexels
the short answer
There are 195 countries in the world in 2026 by the usual count: the 193 members of the United Nations plus its two observer states, Vatican City and Palestine. Add Taiwan and Kosovo, which govern themselves but are not UN members, and you get 197, the number our quiz uses.
193UN members195Plus observers197Our quiz54In Africa

How many countries are there in 2026?

The UN has had 193 members since South Sudan joined on 14 July 2011. I checked its member list in October 2026, and no country has joined since. Two more states take part as non-member observers: Vatican City, through the Holy See, and Palestine. That makes 195, the figure Worldometers gives.

No single body decides what counts as a country, so each list draws its own line. The table shows where the common numbers come from.

193, 195 or 197: what each count includes

  • Member states of the United Nations
    Count:
    193
    Used by:
    The United Nations
  • UN members plus the two observer states, Vatican City and Palestine
    Count:
    195
    Used by:
    Worldometers
  • The 195 plus Taiwan and Kosovo
    Count:
    197
    Used by:
    Our Countries of the World Quiz
  • National Olympic Committees
    Count:
    206
    Used by:
    The International Olympic Committee
  • National football associations
    Count:
    211
    Used by:
    FIFA
  • Countries and areas, territories included
    Count:
    248
    Used by:
    UN statistics (the M49 list)

The sports bodies come out higher because they also take in territories that field their own teams. FIFA says its 211 associations represent countries and territories across six continents.

The places that make the count disagree

  • Vatican City takes part at the UN through the Holy See, as a non-member observer state.
  • Palestine has been a non-member observer state since a General Assembly vote on 29 November 2012.
  • Taiwan governs itself from Taipei as the Republic of China, which held China's seat at the UN until 1971. That year the General Assembly gave the seat to the People's Republic of China. Taiwan's foreign ministry lists 12 states that recognise it: 11 UN members and the Holy See.
  • Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Serbia still claims it, and it is not a UN member.
  • Western Sahara is claimed by Morocco and by the Sahrawi Republic, which the African Union counts as one of its members.
  • Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 and was recognised by Israel in December 2025. It is not a UN member.
  • Northern Cyprus declared independence in 1983, and only Turkey recognises it.

How many countries are on each continent?

I use the UN Statistics Division's regions, with the Americas split into North America (Central America and the Caribbean included) and South America. On those regions Russia counts in Europe, while Turkey, Cyprus, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan count in Asia. Taiwan goes in Asia and Kosovo in Europe. Our Countries of the World Quiz files those six under Europe instead, so its continent totals differ from the ones below.

  • Africa
    Of the 195:
    54
    Of the 197:
    54
  • Asia
    Of the 195:
    48
    Of the 197:
    49
  • Europe
    Of the 195:
    44
    Of the 197:
    45
  • North America
    Of the 195:
    23
    Of the 197:
    23
  • Oceania
    Of the 195:
    14
    Of the 197:
    14
  • South America
    Of the 195:
    12
    Of the 197:
    12
  • Antarctica
    Of the 195:
    0
    Of the 197:
    0

Africa has the most countries, and every one of them is in the UN. Europe has 44 on the UN's regions and 51 on the widest list, which adds the six countries above and Kosovo. All European countries and capitals and all 54 African countries and capitals list them with their capitals.

The full list of all 197 countries

The list runs A to Z, with each country's continent and the year it joined the UN. Sort by year to bring the founders of 1945 or the newest member, South Sudan, to the top. Observers and non-members stay at the bottom either way. The names are the ones our quiz shows. It accepts the official forms too, such as Côte d'Ivoire for Ivory Coast and Timor-Leste for East Timor.

  • Afghanistan
    Continent:
    Asia
    Joined the UN:
    1946
  • Albania
    Continent:
    Europe
    Joined the UN:
    1955
  • Algeria
    Continent:
    Africa
    Joined the UN:
    1962
  • Andorra
    Continent:
    Europe
    Joined the UN:
    1993
  • Angola
    Continent:
    Africa
    Joined the UN:
    1976
  • Antigua and Barbuda
    Continent:
    North America
    Joined the UN:
    1981
  • Argentina
    Continent:
    South America
    Joined the UN:
    1945
  • Armenia
    Continent:
    Asia
    Joined the UN:
    1992
  • Australia
    Continent:
    Oceania
    Joined the UN:
    1945
  • Austria
    Continent:
    Europe
    Joined the UN:
    1955

The newest countries

South Sudan is the newest country. It became independent from Sudan on 9 July 2011 and joined the UN five days later. Before it, the UN's newest members were Montenegro (2006), East Timor and Switzerland (both 2002), and Serbia and Tuvalu (both 2000).

The UN was founded in 1945, and 49 of today's members date their membership to that year. The busiest year since was 1960, when 17 countries joined, 16 of them African.

Can you name all 197?

Type every country you can remember and watch the world map fill in green. There is no time limit.

Play Countries of the World Quiz

Questions people ask

What is the newest country in the world?

South Sudan. It became independent from Sudan on 9 July 2011 and joined the UN on 14 July 2011. No country has joined the UN since.

Is Taiwan a country?

It governs itself, but it is not a UN member and most countries do not recognise it. Its foreign ministry lists 12 states that do: 11 UN members and the Holy See. Our quiz counts it, which is one reason the quiz has 197.

How many countries are in the Olympics and in FIFA?

The International Olympic Committee recognises 206 National Olympic Committees, and FIFA has 211 member associations. Both are higher than the number of countries because they also include territories with their own teams.

Is Greenland a country?

No. Greenland is a self-governing part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Its own government runs most domestic affairs and took on more of them on 21 June 2009, while Denmark handles foreign relations and defence.

Sources

Ziga Straus

I'm Ziga, a developer in the EU. I build and run Geography Games on my own. More about the site

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