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Capitals of Europe

Europe packs many countries into a small space, so its capitals sit close together and a small miss can land you in the next country: Vienna and Bratislava are only about 50 km apart. Some of the smallest states, such as Monaco and Vatican City, are city-states, so the capital is the whole country.

Every capital · 47 capitals

Easy to mix up

Slovakia or Slovenia?

Bratislava (Slovakia) is on the Danube, right where Slovakia meets Austria and Hungary. Ljubljana (Slovenia) is further south-west, in the middle of Slovenia, just south of the Alps.

Budapest or Bucharest?

Budapest, the capital of Hungary, is on the Danube in the centre of Hungary. Bucharest, the capital of Romania, is much further south-east, on the Dâmbovița River in south-eastern Romania.

Rome, Vatican City or San Marino?

Vatican City is an enclave inside Rome, so those two answers are almost the same spot. San Marino is a separate small country further north, on the slopes of the Apennines about 10 km from the Adriatic coast.

Amsterdam or The Hague?

Amsterdam is the official capital of the Netherlands and the game's answer. The government sits in The Hague, on the North Sea coast to the south-west.

Bern, not Zurich

Switzerland's 'federal city' is Bern, where the government sits; Zurich is the largest city. Bern lies on the Aare river, slightly west of the centre of the country.

Finding them on the globe

  • The Danube links four capitals: going downstream, they are Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest and Belgrade.
  • From north to south the Baltic states are in alphabetical order: Estonia (Tallinn), Latvia (Riga), Lithuania (Vilnius). Tallinn and Riga are on the coast; Vilnius is inland.
  • Oslo, Stockholm and Helsinki lie in a row near 60° north, from west to east. Reykjavik, out in the North Atlantic, is the northernmost capital of any sovereign state.
  • On the Iberian Peninsula, Madrid is right in the middle, while Lisbon, the westernmost capital of mainland Europe, is on the Atlantic coast.