How Many Countries Are There in the World?

Short answer: there are 197 countries in the world by the definition most travellers use — the 193 member states of the United Nations, the 2 UN observer states (Vatican City and Palestine), and 2 partially recognised states (Kosovo and Taiwan). On top of that there are 53 territories, such as Greenland, Puerto Rico and Hong Kong, that have their own country codes but are not independent countries.

Ask three people how many countries there are and you may get three different answers: 193, 195 and 197 are all common. None of them is "wrong" — each comes from a different definition. If you're counting the countries you've visited, it helps to know which definition you're using, so your total means the same thing as a friend's.

Why there isn't one official number

There is no single global body that decides what is and isn't a country. Statehood depends on recognition by other states, and recognition is a political decision. Most countries agree about most places, but a handful are recognised by some governments and not others. Every list of "all the countries in the world" has to decide where to draw the line.

193: the United Nations member states

The narrowest common answer is the 193 member states of the United Nations. UN membership is a clear, checkable rule, which is why many official sources use it. Every country on this list is recognised by the overwhelming majority of other states.

195: adding the UN observer states

Two states take part in the UN as non-member observer states: Vatican City (the Holy See) and Palestine. Adding them gives 195 — probably the most quoted figure in schools, quizzes and travel media.

197: adding Kosovo and Taiwan

Kosovo declared independence in 2008 and is recognised by many countries, but not all, and is not a UN member. Taiwan governs itself, issues its own passports and has its own currency, but most governments do not formally recognise it as a state. For travellers, both are clearly distinct destinations with their own borders and entry rules, so many travel-counting lists include them. That gives 197, the definition YouVisited uses for your "percentage of the world explored".

What about territories?

Beyond independent countries, there are places that are part of — or governed by — another country but are geographically separate and often feel like a different destination: Greenland (Denmark), Puerto Rico (United States), Hong Kong (China), Gibraltar (United Kingdom), French Polynesia (France) and many more. Each has its own ISO 3166 country code, which is why they appear in passport stamps, phone codes and internet domains.

YouVisited lets you track all 250 of these places — the 197 countries plus 53 territories — because "I've been to Greenland" is worth recording. Territories count in your list of places visited, but they don't change your world percentage, which is always measured against the 197 countries.

How many countries are on each continent?

Continents are a convention rather than a law of nature, but using the regional groupings in YouVisited, the world breaks down like this:

Antarctica has no countries at all. It is governed under the Antarctic Treaty, and the areas listed for it are territories with their own codes, such as Bouvet Island and the French Southern Territories. You can still record a visit to Antarctica — it counts as one of the seven continents.

Why do lists disagree about Europe?

You will often read that Europe has 44 countries. YouVisited lists 46. The difference comes from two decisions every list has to make:

• Cyprus. Geographically it sits in the eastern Mediterranean, closer to Asia, and the UN's regional scheme places it in Western Asia. Culturally and politically it is firmly European — it is an EU member — so many travel lists, including ours, put it in Europe.
• Kosovo. Lists based strictly on UN membership leave it out. Lists that include partially recognised states, like ours, count it.

Transcontinental countries cause similar disagreements elsewhere. Russia and Turkey both span Europe and Asia; Egypt reaches into Asia through Sinai; Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan are counted in Europe by some sources and Asia by others. YouVisited places each country on exactly one continent so your continent count is never double-counted. You can see every list in full on the countries of the world page.

What counts as "visiting" a country?

This is the other half of the counting question, and there's no official answer here either. Most travellers settle on a personal rule and stick to it. Common ones are:

• You passed through immigration — the strictest and most popular rule. An airport transfer without entering the country doesn't count.
• You set foot outside the airport — even for a few hours on a long layover.
• You stayed overnight — a stricter rule some people use to exclude day trips across a border.

Whatever you choose, consistency matters more than the rule itself. On YouVisited, a country only counts when you confirm you've visited it: planning a trip there, or adding it to your bucket list, never changes your total. You can read more about building a reliable record in how to track the countries you've visited.

How many countries have you visited?

The quickest way to find out is to tick them off on a map. The free countries visited map maker lets you tap countries on a world map or work through a checklist by continent, and shows your count, your percentage of the 197 countries and how many continents you've covered — no account needed.

If you want to keep it, a free YouVisited account turns that into a full travel map with cities, dates and trips, plus travel statistics that update every time you add a visit.