Country Capitals Quiz
15 questions, one score, zero sign-ups. This Country Capitals Quiz mixes easy and tricky questions, and every answer comes with a quick explanation.
15 questionsMixed (easy → hard)~3 minNo timer
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This country capitals quiz takes you around the world in 15 questions, from capitals you will know in a heartbeat to cities that trip up almost everyone. You will match countries to their capitals, pick out a city that is not a capital at all, and work out which capital fits a clue from history, such as a purpose-built city on an inland plateau or a capital built on the ruins of an empire.
Many of the questions target a classic trap: the biggest or most famous city is often not the capital. Sydney, Toronto, Istanbul, Lagos and Yangon are all giants, yet none of them runs its country. That makes this capital and country quiz a good workout for students revising world geography, competitive exam aspirants brushing up on general knowledge, and anyone who enjoys a country capital quiz game with friends.
Each answer comes with a short explanation, so you learn the story behind the city as well as its name. Play once to set a score, read the notes, then come back and try to beat it. If you get the bug, try our continent quizzes next for a deeper round.
A fact to take away: several countries have built brand-new capitals from scratch, including Brasilia, Canberra, Abuja and Naypyidaw, usually to move power away from a crowded coast or to settle a rivalry between two big cities.
Country Capitals questions with answers
Show answers
This view is the capital of Japan. Which city is it?
Photo: Kakidai, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Tokyo
- Osaka
- Kyoto
- Hiroshima
Answer: Tokyo. Tokyo has been Japan's capital since 1868, when the emperor moved there from Kyoto, which had been the imperial capital for over a thousand years.
Not Sydney, not Melbourne: this parliament belongs to the capital of Australia. Which city is it?
Photo: Thennicke, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Sydney
- Canberra
- Melbourne
- Perth
Answer: Canberra. The Canberra site was chosen in 1908 as a compromise between rivals Sydney and Melbourne, and was purpose-built as the capital.
This is the national capital of Canada. Which city is it?
Photo: Wladyslaw, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Toronto
- Montreal
- Vancouver
- Ottawa
Answer: Ottawa. Ottawa, in Ontario, was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1857. Toronto is Canada's largest city.
This planned city replaced Rio de Janeiro as Brazil's capital in 1960. Which city is it?
Photo: Eurico Zimbres, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons - Sao Paulo
- Salvador
- Brasilia
- Belo Horizonte
Answer: Brasilia. Brasilia was built from scratch on the central plateau and inaugurated on 21 April 1960 to draw development inland from the coast.
This city is a national capital. Which of these cities is NOT a national capital?
Photo: Quangnlnhe182394, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons - Nairobi
- Istanbul
- Hanoi
- Rabat
Answer: Istanbul. Istanbul is Turkey's largest city, but Ankara has been the capital since 1923. Nairobi, Hanoi and Rabat are the capitals of Kenya, Vietnam and Morocco.
This city replaced Lagos as Nigeria's capital in 1991. Which city is it?
Photo: Mark Fischer, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Abuja
- Kano
- Ibadan
- Port Harcourt
Answer: Abuja. Abuja, near the centre of the country, became Nigeria's official capital on 12 December 1991. Lagos remains its biggest city.
The city in this photo is the southernmost capital of any sovereign country. Which city is it?
Photo: lumoplank, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons - Canberra
- Buenos Aires
- Wellington
- Cape Town
Answer: Wellington. Wellington, New Zealand's capital since 1865, sits at about 41 degrees south at the southern tip of the North Island.
Which country has three capital cities: one for government, one for parliament and one for its top court?
- Bolivia
- Netherlands
- Malaysia
- South Africa
Answer: South Africa. South Africa splits its capital: Pretoria (executive), Cape Town (legislative) and Bloemfontein (judicial).
This purpose-built city became Myanmar's capital in 2005-06. Which city is it?
Photo: Sarah Tallinn, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Mandalay
- Naypyidaw
- Bago
- Mawlamyine
Answer: Naypyidaw. Naypyidaw, a planned city in central Myanmar, was officially named the capital in 2006. Yangon is still the largest city.
This is the official capital of Sri Lanka, beside commercial Colombo. Which city is it?
Photo: Dennis Sylvester Hurd, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons - Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte
- Kandy
- Anuradhapura
- Galle
Answer: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte. Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte has been the legislative capital since 1982, while Colombo remains the commercial capital and largest city.
This capital stands on the site of the Aztec city Tenochtitlan. Which city is it?
Photo: CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Lima
- Guatemala City
- Havana
- Mexico City
Answer: Mexico City. The Aztecs founded Tenochtitlan on an island in Lake Texcoco. The Spanish built Mexico City over its ruins after 1521.
This capital was renamed Nur-Sultan in 2019, then changed its name back in 2022. Which city is it?
Photo: Dauren Nabijan, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons - Almaty
- Bishkek
- Astana
- Tashkent
Answer: Astana. The capital took back the name Astana, meaning 'capital' in Kazakh, in September 2022. Almaty was the capital until 1997.
One of these country-capital pairs is correct, and this city is in it. Which pair?
Photo: Murray Foubister, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Peru - Lima
- Kenya - Kampala
- Vietnam - Bangkok
- Morocco - Tunis
Answer: Peru - Lima. Lima is Peru's capital. Kampala is Uganda's capital, Bangkok is Thailand's and Tunis is Tunisia's.
This building stands in the US capital. What does 'D.C.' in its name stand for?
Photo: Martin Falbisoner, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Democratic Capital
- District of Columbia
- Delaware County
- Dominion Centre
Answer: District of Columbia. D.C. means District of Columbia, a federal district that belongs to no state. It was set up as the permanent capital in 1790.
This is the capital of Bhutan. Which city is it?
Photo: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons - Paro
- Punakha
- Thimphu
- Gangtok
Answer: Thimphu. Thimphu replaced the old winter capital Punakha. Paro is home to Bhutan's international airport, and Gangtok is the capital of the Indian state of Sikkim.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I find country capitals questions with answers?
This page has 15 country capitals questions with answers and short explanations. Play the quiz to see each answer as you go, or scroll down to the answer key, where every question and its answer is listed.
How many questions are in this country capitals quiz?
There are 15 multiple-choice questions with four options each, covering capitals in Asia, Africa, the Americas and Oceania. They run from easy to hard and take only a few minutes to play.
Can I play the country capitals quiz online for free without signing up?
Yes. This capital quiz on countries is free to play online with no sign-up or login. You see your score instantly at the end and can share it to challenge friends.
Why is the largest city often not the capital?
Capitals are often chosen for political reasons rather than size. Some were picked as a compromise between rival cities, as with Canberra, and others were moved inland or to the centre of the country, as with Brasilia and Abuja.