Capital cities quiz questions for your next pub quiz round

Capital cities are a pub quiz staple, but they're trickier than most people expect. Some capitals aren't a country's biggest or most famous city. Some have moved from one place to another within living memory. And a handful of countries can't fully agree on which of two cities gets to hold the title. These 18 questions start with the capitals almost any team should get right, then build up to the ones that catch out even well-travelled quizzers.

If you want a broader geography round to go alongside this one, our geography quiz questions cover rivers, mountains, borders, and a different set of capitals entirely. Or head straight to the quiz creator to build your own round from scratch.

Well-Known Capitals

Start here. These are the capitals most people can name without much thought, though a couple still trip up a team that's rushing.

1What is the capital city of France?

Answer:Paris(click to reveal)

2What is the capital city of Egypt?

Answer:Cairo(click to reveal)

3What is the capital city of Germany?

Answer:Berlin(click to reveal)

4What is the capital city of Japan?

Answer:Tokyo(click to reveal)

5What is the capital city of Argentina?

Answer:Buenos Aires(click to reveal)

6What is the capital city of Kenya?

Answer:Nairobi(click to reveal)

Capitals That Surprise People

These are all capitals that a lot of people get wrong on the first guess, usually because they assume the country's most famous or biggest city must be in charge.

7What is the capital of the United States?

Answer:Washington, D.C. (not New York City, which is the country's largest city but has never been its capital)(click to reveal)

8What is the capital of Nigeria?

Answer:Abuja. It replaced Lagos as the official capital in December 1991, after the government decided a purpose-built city in a more central location would ease tensions between the country's regions (source).(click to reveal)

9What is the capital of Morocco?

Answer:Rabat (not Casablanca, which is the bigger and better-known city internationally thanks to the film of the same name)(click to reveal)

10What is the capital of New Zealand?

Answer:Wellington (not Auckland, which is New Zealand's largest city and main airport hub)(click to reveal)

11What is the capital of Vietnam?

Answer:Hanoi (not Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon, which is Vietnam's largest city and main commercial centre)(click to reveal)

12What is the capital of Pakistan?

Answer:Islamabad. It's a planned city that officially took over from Karachi in 1967, after several years of Rawalpindi serving as a temporary capital while Islamabad was being built (source).(click to reveal)

Tricky Capitals

This is where the real quiz nerds separate themselves from the crowd. Every question here involves a capital that's moved, split its duties between two cities, or otherwise breaks the rule that a capital should be the country's best-known city.

13Which country moved its capital from Yangon to a purpose-built city called Naypyidaw in 2005?

Answer:Myanmar. The move was announced with little warning and the reasons were never fully explained by the government, though a more central, defensible location away from the coast is generally thought to have been the main driver (source).(click to reveal)

14Which European country's constitution names Amsterdam as its capital, even though the king, the government, and the international courts are all based in The Hague?

Answer:The Netherlands. The Hague has hosted the country's parliament and executive branch since the 16th century, but Amsterdam has held the official title of capital since 1814 (source).(click to reveal)

15Which South American country splits its capital duties between Sucre, which holds the judiciary, and another city that's home to the president and legislature?

Answer:Bolivia. The other city is La Paz, which became the seat of government after a conflict at the end of the 19th century, while Sucre kept the official title of constitutional capital (source).(click to reveal)

16Which East African country's official capital is Dodoma, even though the larger and more internationally recognised Dar es Salaam still hosts most embassies and commercial life?

Answer:Tanzania. The government announced the move to Dodoma back in 1974 to centralise the capital within the country, but the transition has taken decades and is still not fully complete (source).(click to reveal)

17Which West African country's political capital is Yamoussoukro, while its biggest city and main port carries most of its economic and diplomatic activity?

Answer:Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire). The port city is Abidjan, which served as the capital until 1983 and remains where most foreign embassies are still located (source).(click to reveal)

18Which small Pacific island nation has a capital, Ngerulmud, with virtually no permanent residents, making it one of the least populated national capitals in the world?

Answer:Palau. It replaced the more populated Koror City as the official capital in 2006, but government workers largely commute in from nearby villages rather than living there (source).(click to reveal)

Tips for Running a Capital Cities Round

Front-load the confidence. Open with the well-known capitals so every team gets a few points on the board before the tricky ones start.

Double-check anything you learned years ago. Capital cities change more than most quiz hosts expect, and an outdated fact is one of the fastest ways to lose a room's trust. If in doubt, verify before you ask.

Decide how you'll handle dual-capital countries in advance. A couple of these questions have two defensible answers depending on how the question is phrased. Agree on what you'll accept before the round starts, not mid-argument.

Keep a map or an atlas app handy. Capital city rounds are exactly the kind that end in a table full of people trying to picture a map from memory. A quick lookup after the round settles most disputes.

Looking for more rounds to pair with this one? Our geography quiz questions go beyond capitals into rivers, deserts, and borders, and our general knowledge quiz questions work well if you want to mix capitals in with a wider variety of topics. Or use our quiz creator to put together a custom round in minutes.