How many countries are there in the world?

193: the members of the United Nations

The UN’s list is the one most people mean. Every member is a sovereign state recognised by the others, from China to Tuvalu. The newest is South Sudan, which joined in 2011. See all 193 UN member states.

195: with Vatican City and Palestine

The UN has two non-member observer states: the Holy See (Vatican City) and the State of Palestine. Add them and you get 195, the number most often quoted in schools and atlases.

Taiwan and Kosovo

Two more places govern themselves and are recognised by many countries but are not UN members: Taiwan and Kosovo. Some lists stop at 195 and some count them, which is why you will also see 197.

250: countries and territories

Then there are the territories with their own flag, their own entry rules and their own place on the map: Greenland, Puerto Rico, Hong Kong, the Faroe Islands and dozens more. Globestamp counts 250: the 193, the two observers, Taiwan and Kosovo, and 53 territories, close to the international list of country codes that travel forms and airlines use. See the territories that count.

330: the Travelers’ Century Club

The Travelers’ Century Club, a club for people who have been to 100 places or more, splits the world further: Alaska and Hawaii count apart from the rest of the United States, the Canary Islands apart from Spain, Sicily apart from Italy. Its list has 330 destinations. See the whole TCC list.

Which number should you count by?

If you want a number people recognise, count UN members. If you want your count to match where you’ve really been, count territories too: a week in Puerto Rico or the Canary Islands feels like a trip abroad. If you collect, the TCC’s 330 is the long game. Globestamp counts all three at once, and you can switch which one shows; read which list should you count by.

By continent

Continents follow the UN’s geoscheme; the Americas are split into North (with Central America and the Caribbean) and South.