How many countries are there in the world?
195 countries
There are 195 countries in the world according to the UN: 193 member states and 2 observer states (Palestine and Vatican City). This is the reference list used across this site.
By continent
54 countries in Africa 
35 countries in the Americas (North, Central, Caribbean and South) 
47 countries in Asia 
45 countries in Europe 
14 countries in Oceania 
35 countries in the Americas (North, Central, Caribbean and South) 47 countries in Asia 45 countries in Europe 14 countries in Oceania Russia and Türkiye are counted in Europe, Kazakhstan in Asia and Egypt in Africa. Other groupings exist, which is why figures sometimes differ elsewhere.
Why do other figures exist?
There is no single official world list of countries: each organisation keeps its own.
- UN: 195. The 193 member states, plus the Vatican and Palestine as observer states.
- Partially recognised countries. Taiwan and Kosovo function as states but are not UN members. Adding them gives 197.
- FIFA: 211 associations. Football also counts territories, such as England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland separately, or Hong Kong and Tahiti.
- Olympic Games: 206 national committees. They include territories such as Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands.
- ISO 3166 standard: 249 codes. It assigns a code to every country and territory, Antarctica included.
The newest country is South Sudan, independent since 2011 and the 193rd UN member.