Capitals are more than mere geographical locations; they are the political, cultural, and economic hearts of their countries. These cities reflect the history, identity, and ambitions of a nation. From ancient metropolises to modern megacities, each capital has its unique story to tell.
Capital cities in Europe
This table displays every European capital along with its corresponding country and population.
Country | Capital City | Population |
---|---|---|
Åland | Mariehamn | 11,750 |
Albania | Tirana | 418,495 |
Andorra | Andorra la Vella | 22,886 |
Austria | Vienna | 1,990,487 |
Belarus | Minsk | 2,018,281 |
Belgium | Brussels | 1,175,173 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | Sarajevo | 275,524 |
Bulgaria | Sofia | 1,221,785 |
Croatia | Zagreb | 790,017 |
Czechia | Prague | 1,301,432 |
Denmark | Copenhagen | 638,790 |
Estonia | Tallinn | 437,817 |
Faroe Islands | Tórshavn | 13,888 |
Finland | Helsinki | 656,920 |
France | Paris | 2,206,488 |
Germany | Berlin | 3,664,088 |
Gibraltar | Gibraltar | 34,003 |
Greece | Athens | 664,046 |
Guernsey | Saint Peter Port | 19,354 |
Hungary | Budapest | 1,737,026 |
Iceland | Reykjavík | 129,964 |
Ireland | Dublin | 544,107 |
Isle of Man | Douglas | 27,938 |
Italy | Rome | 2,759,629 |
Jersey | Saint Helier | 35,822 |
Kosovo | Pristina | 211,129 |
Latvia | Riga | 5,774 |
Liechtenstein | Vaduz | 5,774 |
Lithuania | Vilnius | 546,155 |
Luxembourg | Luxembourg | 128,494 |
Malta | Valletta | 5,876 |
Moldova | Chisinau | 339,079 |
Monaco | Monaco | 31,109 |
Montenegro | Podgorica | 185,937 |
Netherlands | Amsterdam | 872,680 |
North Macedonia | Skopje | 546,824 |
Norway | Oslo | 681,067 |
Poland | Warsaw | 1,793,579 |
Portugal | Lisbon | 505,526 |
Romania | Bucharest | 1,823,526 |
Russia | Moscow | 12,506,468 |
San Marino | San Marino | 4,127 |
Serbia | Belgrade | 1,387,422 |
Slovakia | Bratislava | 435,296 |
Slovenia | Ljubljana | 285,604 |
Spain | Madrid | 3,320,069 |
Svalbard | Longyearbyen | 2,144 |
Sweden | Stockholm | 935,619 |
Switzerland | Bern | 134,290 |
Ukraine | Kyiv | 2,962,180 |
United Kingdom | London | 8,961,989 |
Vatican | Vatican City | 453 |
Capital cities in the Americas
Country | Capital City | Population |
---|---|---|
Anguilla | The Valley | 2,812 |
Antigua and Barbuda | Saint John’s | 81,799 |
Argentina | Buenos Aires | 2,891,082 |
Aruba | Oranjestad | 34,980 |
Bahamas | Nassau | 266,100 |
Barbados | Bridgetown | 110,000 |
Belize | Belmopan | 13,939 |
Bermuda | Hamilton | 854 |
Bolivia | Sucre | 300,000 |
Brazil | Brasilia | 2,912,090 |
British Virgin Islands | Road Town | 12,603 |
Canada | Ottawa | 1,071,868 |
Cayman Islands | George Town | 34,921 |
Chile | Santiago | 536,089 |
Colombia | Bogota | 7,181,469 |
Costa Rica | San José | 354,025 |
Cuba | Havana | 2,137,847 |
Curacao | Willemstad | 150,000 |
Dominica | Roseau | 16,582 |
Ecuador | Quito | 2,011,388 |
El Salvador | San Salvador | 200,319 |
Falkland Islands | Stanley | 2,460 |
French Guiana | Cayenne | 57,614 |
Greenland | Nuuk | 18,128 |
Grenada | Saint George’s | 33,734 |
Guadeloupe | Basse-Terre | 10,046 |
Guatemala | Guatemala City | 923,392 |
Guyana | Georgetown | 24,849 |
Haiti | Port-au-Prince | 987,310 |
Honduras | Tegucigalpa | 996,658 |
Jamaica | Kingston | 584,627 |
Martinique | Fort-de-France | 82,502 |
Mexico | Mexico City | 9,209,944 |
Montserrat | Brades | 449 |
Nicaragua | Managua | 1,033,622 |
Panama | Panama City | 505,627 |
Paraguay | Asunción | 525,252 |
Peru | Lima | 9,751,717 |
Puerto Rico | San Juan | 337,300 |
Saint Barthelemy | Gustavia | 2,300 |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | Basseterre | 14,000 |
Saint Lucia | Castries | 3,661 |
Saint Pierre and Miquelon | Saint-Pierre | 5,415 |
Sint Maarten | Philipsburg | 1,327 |
South Georgia | King Edward Point | 18 |
St. Martin | Marigot | 5,700 |
Suriname | Paramaribo | 240,924 |
Trinidad and Tobago | Port-of-Spain | 37,074 |
United States | Washington, D.C. | 671,803 |
Uruguay | Montevideo | 1,384,210 |
Venezuela | Caracas | 2,245,744 |
Virgin Islands | Charlotte Amalie | 10,354 |
Capital cities in Asia
This list shows all the capitals of Europe with country and population.
Country | Capital City | Population |
---|---|---|
Afghanistan | Kabul | 4,601,789 |
Armenia | Yerevan | 1,087,886 |
Azerbaijan | Baku | 2,330,425 |
Bahrain | Manama | 157,474 |
Bangladesh | Dhaka | 8,906,035 |
Bhutan | Thimphu | 114,551 |
Brunei | Bandar Seri Begawan | 50,000 |
Cambodia | Phnom Penh | 2,281,951 |
China | Beijing | 21,893,095 |
Cyprus | Nicosia | 116,392 |
East Timor | Dili | 222,323 |
Georgia | Tbilisi | 1,154,314 |
Hong Kong | Hong Kong | 7,346,100 |
India | New Delhi | 33,807,000 |
Indonesia | Jakarta | 10,562,088 |
Iran | Tehran | 8,846,782 |
Iraq | Baghdad | 8,126,755 |
Israel | Jerusalem | 958,679 |
Japan | Tokyo | 37,115,035 |
Jordan | Amman | 4,007,526 |
Kazakhstan | Nursultan | 1,354,507 |
Kuwait | Kuwait City | 2,989,000 |
Kyrgyzstan | Bishkek | 1,071,261 |
Laos | Vientiane | 783,000 |
Lebanon | Beirut | 361,366 |
Macao | Concelho de Macau | 677,300 |
Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur | 1,982,112 |
Maldives | Malé | 240,984 |
Mongolia | Ulaanbaatar | 1,665,469 |
Myanmar | Nay Pyi Taw | 1,160,242 |
Nepal | Kathmandu | 975,453 |
North Korea | Pyongyang | 3,222,000 |
Oman | Muscat | 31,409 |
Pakistan | Islamabad | 1,009,003 |
Palestine | Ramallah | 27,092 |
Philippines | Manila | 1,846,513 |
Qatar | Doha | 1,186,023 |
Saudi Arabia | Riyadh | 7,676,654 |
Singapore | Singapore | 5,637,022 |
South Korea | Seoul | 9,617,795 |
Sri Lanka | Colombo | 752,993 |
Syria | Damascus | 2,354,000 |
Taiwan | Taipei | 2,646,204 |
Tajikistan | Dushanbe | 770,027 |
Thailand | Bangkok | 11,234,000 |
Turkey | Ankara | 5,663,322 |
Turkmenistan | Ashgabat | 1,031,992 |
United Arab Emirates | Abu Dhabi | 1,482,816 |
Uzbekistan | Tashkent | 2,862,420 |
Vietnam | Hanoi | 4,678,198 |
Yemen | Sanaa | 2,545,000 |
Capital cities in Africa
Country | Capital City | Population |
---|---|---|
Algeria | Algiers | 2,712,944 |
Angola | Luanda | 2,571,861 |
Benin | Porto-Novo | 264,320 |
Botswana | Gaborone | 246,323 |
Burkina Faso | Ouagadougou | 2,415,266 |
Burundi | Bujumbura | 497,169 |
Cameroon | Yaounde | 2,765,600 |
Cape Verde | Praia | 130,271 |
Central Africa | Bangui | 889,231 |
Chad | N’Djamena | 1,092,066 |
Comoros | Moroni | 54,000 |
Congo | Brazzaville | 2,308,000 |
Congo (Dem. Republic) | Kinshasa | 14,970,000 |
Djibouti | Djibouti | 475,322 |
Egypt | Cairo | 9,539,673 |
Equatorial Guinea | Malabo | 315,665 |
Eritrea | Asmara | 963,000 |
Eswatini | Mbabane | 60,691 |
Ethiopia | Addis Ababa | 2,739,551 |
Gabon | Libreville | 703,904 |
Gambia | Banjul | 31,301 |
Ghana | Accra | 1,594,419 |
Guinea | Conakry | 1,659,785 |
Guinea-Bissau | Bissau | 387,909 |
Ivory Coast | Yamoussoukro | 279,977 |
Kenya | Nairobi | 4,397,073 |
Lesotho | Maseru | 330,760 |
Liberia | Monrovia | 1,010,970 |
Libya | Tripoli | 1,126,000 |
Madagascar | Antananarivo | 1,275,207 |
Malawi | Lilongwe | 989,318 |
Mali | Bamako | 1,810,366 |
Mauritania | Nouakchott | 958,399 |
Mauritius | Port Louis | 143,574 |
Mayotte | Mamoudzou | 57,281 |
Morocco | Rabat | 573,895 |
Mozambique | Maputo | 1,080,277 |
Namibia | Windhoek | 429,974 |
Niger | Niamey | 1,026,848 |
Nigeria | Abuja | 2,750,000 |
Reunion | Saint-Denis | 146,985 |
Rwanda | Kigali | 859,332 |
Saint Helena | Jamestown | 657 |
Sao Tome and Principe | São Tomé | 56,945 |
Senegal | Dakar | 1,146,053 |
Seychelles | Victoria | 26,450 |
Sierra Leone | Freetown | 1,055,964 |
Somalia | Mogadishu | 2,388,000 |
South Africa | Pretoria | 741,651 |
South Sudan | Juba | 230,195 |
Sudan | Khartoum | 639,598 |
Tanzania | Dodoma | 2,083,588 |
Togo | Lomé | 839,566 |
Tunisia | Tunis | 1,056,247 |
Uganda | Kampala | 1,507,114 |
Western Sahara | El Aaiún | 196,331 |
Zambia | Lusaka | 1,747,152 |
Zimbabwe | Harare | 1,698,122 |
Capitals of Oceania
Country | Capital City | Population |
---|---|---|
American Samoa | Pago Pago | 2,934 |
Australia | Canberra | 477,567 |
Christmas Island | Flying Fish Cove | 1,600 |
Cocos Islands | West Island | 134 |
Cook Islands | Avarua | 4,906 |
Fiji | Suva | 100,237 |
French Polynesia | Papeete | 26,925 |
Guam | Hagåtña | 1,051 |
Kiribati | Tarawa | 69,710 |
Marshall Islands | Majuro | 27,797 |
Nauru | Yaren | 747 |
New Caledonia | Nouméa | 94,285 |
New Zealand | Wellington | 424,441 |
Niue | Alofi | 578 |
Norfolk Island | Kingston | 880 |
Northern Marianas | Saipan | 48,220 |
Papua New Guinea | Port Moresby | 420,419 |
Pitcairn Islands | Adamstown | 50 |
Samoa | Apia | 38,465 |
Solomon Islands | Honiara | 111,987 |
Tonga | Nuku‘alofa | 21,695 |
Tuvalu | Funafuti | 7,804 |
Vanuatu | Port-Vila | 61,424 |
Wallis and Futuna | Mata-Utu | 1,126 |
What is a capital city?
A capital city is the municipality exercising primary status in a country, state, province, or other administrative region, usually as its seat of government. A capital is typically a city where the government’s central offices and officials reside, including the head of state, government leaders, and administrative offices. It is the political, cultural, and often economic center of the country or region it serves.
Capitals are chosen for various reasons, including historical, geographical, political, and strategic considerations. Some capitals, like Rome, have ancient origins and have served as the center of power for centuries. Others, such as Brasília in Brazil, were planned and built specifically to serve as a capital, often with the intention of bringing development to less populated or developed areas or to have a neutral location not favoring any existing region.
In addition to being administrative hubs, capital cities often reflect the identity and heritage of a nation. They are usually home to important cultural institutions, such as museums, theaters, and libraries, as well as significant architectural landmarks. Capitals also frequently host foreign embassies and consulates, international organizations, and are the location for state ceremonies and events of national significance.