Misc

Distribution of World Capitals by Elevation

Published

11 months ago

July 2, 2024

Julie R. Peasley

Creator Program Ambassador

Article/Editing:

Chris Dickert

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

Ranked: World Capitals by Elevation

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Capital cities are often the economic, cultural, and political heart of nations. In premodern times, these were often also where the ruler resided, so if you wanted to resolve a dispute or receive some favor, then you had to travel there to petition the ruler directly: in essence, going straight to the top.

In this visualization, creator Julia R. Peasley asks the further question, just how high up is that proverbial top for all the world’s 196 capital cities. Data comes from Wikipedia’s list of capital cities by elevation and includes only United Nations Member and Observer states.

From Sea to Sky

The top spot goes to Bolivia’s La Paz, which at nearly 12,000 feet (3,640 meters) above sea level. It’s the world’s highest capital city, which is not surprising once you realize that the country is bisected by the East Andes Mountain Range and that the mean elevation of the country is close to 4,000 feet (1,192 meters).

Country	Capital	Elevation (ft)	Elevation (m)
🇦🇿 Azerbaijan	Baku	-92	-28
🇳🇱 Netherlands	Amsterdam	-7	-2
🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda	Saint John's	0	0
🇧🇳 Brunei	Bandar Seri Begawan	0	0
🇨🇻 Cape Verde	Praia	0	0
🇩🇯 Djibouti	Djibouti	0	0
🇩🇲 Dominica	Roseau	0	0
🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	Santo Domingo	0	0
🇫🇯 Fiji	Suva	0	0
🇬🇦 Gabon	Libreville	0	0
🇬🇲 The Gambia	Banjul	0	0
🇬🇳 Guinea	Conakry	0	0
🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau	Bissau	0	0
🇬🇾 Guyana	Georgetown	0	0
🇰🇮 Kiribati	South Tarawa	0	0
🇱🇷 Liberia	Monrovia	0	0
🇲🇻 Maldives	Malé	0	0
🇲🇨 Monaco	Monaco	0	0
🇵🇦 Panama	Panama City	0	0
🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis	Basseterre	0	0
🇼🇸 Samoa	Apia	0	0
🇸🇨 Seychelles	Victoria	0	0
🇸🇬 Singapore	Singapore	0	0
🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Kingstown	0	0
🇹🇴 Tonga	Nuku'alofa	0	0
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago	Port of Spain	0	0
🇹🇳 Tunisia	Tunis	0	0
🇹🇻 Tuvalu	Vaiaku	0	0
🇻🇺 Vanuatu	Port Vila	0	0
🇩🇿 Algeria	Algiers	3	1
🇸🇷 Suriname	Paramaribo	3	1
🇹🇭 Thailand	Bangkok	3	1
🇧🇸 Bahamas	Nassau	7	2
🇱🇨 Saint Lucia	Castries	7	2
🇺🇸 United States	Washington, D.C.	7	2
🇧🇩 Bangladesh	Dhaka	10	3
🇮🇩 Indonesia	Jakarta	10	3
🇲🇭 Marshall Islands	Majuro	10	3
🇨🇺 Cuba	Havana	13	4
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	Sri Jayawardenapura-Kotte	13	4
🇩🇰 Denmark	Copenhagen	16	5
🇰🇼 Kuwait	Kuwait	16	5
🇦🇴 Angola	Luanda	20	6
🇧🇭 Bahrain	Manama	20	6
🇧🇧 Barbados	Bridgetown	20	6
🇱🇾 Libya	Tripoli	20	6
🇲🇷 Mauritania	Nouakchott	20	6
🇰🇵 North Korea	Pyongyang	20	6
🇵🇭 Philippines	Manila	23	7
🇱🇻 Latvia	Riga	26	8
🇮🇪 Ireland	Dublin	26	8
🇳🇷 Nauru	Yaren	30	9
🇦🇷 Argentina	Buenos Aires	33	10
🇳🇿 New Zealand	Wellington	32	10
🇹🇱 Timor-Leste	Dili	36	11
🇳🇴 Norway	Oslo	40	12
🇶🇦 Qatar	Doha	43	13
🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates	Abu Dhabi	43	13
🇮🇹 Italy	Rome	46	14
🇬🇧 United Kingdom	London	46	14
🇰🇭 Cambodia	Phnom Penh	49	15
🇮🇸 Iceland	Reykjavík	49	15
🇵🇹 Portugal	Lisbon	49	15
🇸🇪 Sweden	Stockholm	49	15
🇯🇵 Japan	Tokyo	56	17
🇪🇬 Egypt	Cairo	72	22
🇫🇮 Finland	Helsinki	82	25
🇬🇩 Grenada	Saint George's	82	25
🇻🇳 Vietnam	Hanoi	82	25
🇸🇴 Somalia	Mogadishu	92	28
🇸🇧 Solomon Islands	Honiara	95	29
🇰🇷 South Korea	Seoul	108	33
🇫🇷 France	Paris	112	34
🇩🇪 Germany	Berlin	112	34
🇪🇪 Estonia	Tallinn	121	37
🇸🇳 Senegal	Dakar	121	37
🇧🇯 Benin	Porto-Novo	125	38
🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea	Port Moresby	128	39
🇮🇶 Iraq	Baghdad	131	40
🇻🇦 Vatican City	Vatican City	135	41
🇺🇾 Uruguay	Montevideo	141	43
🇨🇳 China	Beijing	144	44
🇲🇺 Mauritius	Port Louis	170	50
🇯🇲 Jamaica	Kingston	174	53
🇲🇦 Morocco	Rabat	174	53
🇲🇹 Malta	Valletta	186	54
🇵🇾 Paraguay	Asunción	177	54
🇱🇧 Lebanon	Beirut	180	55
🇲🇾 Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur	197	60
🇲🇪 Montenegro	Podgorica	200	61
🇲🇿 Mozambique	Maputo	207	63
🇹🇬 Togo	Lomé	207	63
🇴🇲 Oman	Muscat	223	68
🇷🇴 Romania	Bucharest	230	70
🇵🇼 Palau	Ngerulmud	236	72
🇨🇦 Canada	Ottawa	243	74
🇧🇪 Belgium	Brussels	249	76
🇧🇿 Belize	Belmopan	250	76
🇸🇱 Sierra Leone	Freetown	249	76
🇲🇲 Myanmar	Naypyidaw	253	77
🇲🇩 Moldova	Chișinău	263	80
🇳🇮 Nicaragua	Managua	272	83
🇫🇲 Micronesia	Palikir	300	90
🇵🇱 Poland	Warsaw	305	93
🇬🇭 Ghana	Accra	322	98
🇭🇹 Haiti	Port-au-Prince	322	98
🇭🇺 Hungary	Budapest	335	102
🇦🇱 Albania	Tirana	341	104
🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea	Malabo	351	107
🇰🇲 Comoros	Moroni	361	110
🇷🇸 Serbia	Belgrade	381	116
🇱🇹 Lithuania	Vilnius	407	124
🇷🇺 Russia	Moscow	407	124
🇭🇷 Croatia	Zagreb	427	130
🇸🇰 Slovakia	Bratislava	430	131
🇸🇹 São Tomé and Príncipe	São Tomé	463	141
🇬🇷 Greece	Athens	502	153
🇵🇪 Peru	Lima	506	154
🇨🇬 Congo	Brazzaville	509	155
🇺🇦 Ukraine	Kyiv	551	168
🇦🇹 Austria	Vienna	558	170
🇨🇾 Cyprus	Nicosia	557	170
🇱🇦 Laos	Vientiane	570	174
🇧🇾 Belarus	Minsk	650	198
🇳🇪 Niger	Niamey	679	207
🇮🇳 India	New Delhi	689	210
🇹🇲 Turkmenistan	Ashgabat	705	215
🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire	Yamoussoukro	712	217
🇨🇩 DRC	Kinshasa	787	240
🇲🇰 North Macedonia	Skopje	797	243
🇨🇿 Czechia	Prague	801	244
🇱🇺 Luxembourg	Luxembourg	896	273
🇸🇮 Slovenia	Ljubljana	922	281
🇹🇩 Chad	N'Djamena	978	298
🇧🇫 Burkina Faso	Ouagadougou	1,001	305
🇸🇲 San Marino	San Marino	1,076	328
🇰🇿 Kazakhstan	Astana	1,109	338
🇲🇱 Mali	Bamako	1,145	349
🇨🇫 Central African Republic	Bangui	1,211	369
🇸🇩 Sudan	Khartoum	1,237	377
🇬🇪 Georgia	Tbilisi	1,480	451
🇱🇮 Liechtenstein	Vaduz	1,493	455
🇺🇿 Uzbekistan	Tashkent	1,506	459
🇨🇱 Chile	Santiago	1,709	521
🇨🇭 Switzerland	Bern	1,778	542
🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina	Sarajevo	1,800	550
🇸🇸 South Sudan	Juba	1,800	550
🇵🇰 Pakistan	Islamabad	1,830	560
🇧🇬 Bulgaria	Sofia	1,900	580
🇦🇺 Australia	Canberra	1,985	605
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia	Riyadh	2,047	624
🇸🇻 El Salvador	San Salvador	2,159	658
🇪🇸 Spain	Madrid	2,188	667
🇸🇾 Syria	Damascus	2,267	691
🇨🇲 Cameroon	Yaoundé	2,382	726
🇮🇱 Israel	Jerusalem	2,474	754
🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan	Bishkek	2,530	771
🇳🇬 Nigeria	Abuja	2,549	777
🇵🇸 Palestine	East Jerusalem	2,557	779
🇹🇯 Tajikistan	Dushanbe	2,589	789
🇯🇴 Jordan	Amman	2,953	900
🇻🇪 Venezuela	Caracas	2,982	909
🇹🇷 Türkiye	Ankara	3,077	938
🇧🇼 Botswana	Gaborone	3,225	983
🇦🇲 Armenia	Yerevan	3,246	989
🇭🇳 Honduras	Tegucigalpa	3,250	990
🇦🇩 Andorra	Andorra la Vella	3,356	1,023
🇲🇼 Malawi	Lilongwe	3,360	1,024
🇧🇷 Brazil	Brasília	3,540	1,079
🇹🇿 Tanzania	Dodoma	3,675	1,120
🇨🇷 Costa Rica	San José	3,760	1,146
🇺🇬 Uganda	Kampala	3,904	1,190
🇸🇿 Eswatini	Mbabane	4,078	1,243
🇿🇲 Zambia	Lusaka	4,167	1,270
🇿🇦 South Africa	Pretoria	4,170	1,271
🇲🇬 Madagascar	Antananarivo	4,226	1,288
🇲🇳 Mongolia	Ulaanbaatar	4,429	1,350
🇳🇵 Nepal	Kathmandu	4,593	1,400
🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	Harare	4,865	1,483
🇧🇮 Burundi	Gitega	4,934	1,504
🇬🇹 Guatemala	Guatemala City	5,016	1,529
🇷🇼 Rwanda	Kigali	5,141	1,567
🇱🇸 Lesotho	Maseru	5,489	1,673
🇳🇦 Namibia	Windhoek	5,646	1,721
🇦🇫 Afghanistan	Kabul	5,873	1,790
🇰🇪 Kenya	Nairobi	5,889	1,795
🇮🇷 Iran	Tehran	6,003	1,830
🇲🇽 Mexico	Mexico City	7,350	2,240
🇾🇪 Yemen	Sanaʽa	7,382	2,250
🇪🇷 Eritrea	Asmara	7,628	2,325
🇧🇹 Bhutan	Thimphu	7,657	2,334
🇪🇹 Ethiopia	Addis Ababa	7,726	2,355
🇨🇴 Colombia	Bogotá	8,612	2,625
🇧🇴 Bolivia	Sucre	9,220	2,790
🇪🇨 Ecuador	Quito	9,350	2,850
🇧🇴 Bolivia	La Paz	11,942	3,640

Source: Wikipedia.

On the other end of the scale sits Baku, Azerbaijan, which at -92 feet (-28 meters) is the lowest-lying world capital.

Normally, that would mean that the city would need to rely on extensive dikes and levees to keep the waters at bay, much like second-lowest Amsterdam in the Netherlands. However, because the country is landlocked, even though the city sits on the Caspian Sea, it remains dry.

This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

Related Topics:cities ranking elevation capitals sea level Bolivia La Paz Baku Azerbaijan

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Maps

Mapped: The World’s Largest Economies, Including U.S. States

California is now the fourth-largest economy in the world. But how do other U.S. states rank in the world’s largest economies?

Published

13 hours ago

May 16, 2025

Pallavi Rao

This cropped map ranks the world's largest economies including both sovereign countries and U.S. states.

Mapped: World’s Largest Economies, Including U.S. States

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Key Takeaways

California passed Japan to become the fourth-largest economy in 2024, new data from the BEA reveals.
Nine U.S. states feature in the world’s 30 largest economies as measured by their 2024 GDP.

It’s in the name really. The United States of America began as a union of separate entities coming together.

And while the U.S. is seen as a single global economic and political hegemon today, many of its 50 states are major economies on their own.

To show just how big they are, we’ve mapped and ranked 30 of the world’s largest economies, including U.S. states, to see how they stack up against entire countries.

ℹ️ The U.S. is included as a reference point; removing it would make China the largest economy.

Figures are sourced from the Bureau of Economic Analysis(BEA) and International Monetary Fund (IMF), both for 2024.

Ranked: World’s Largest Economies, Including U.S. States

California is the largest U.S. state by GDP and would rank 4th in the world if it was its own country.

Its GDP ($4.1 trillion) is now larger than every other country, barring Germany, China, and of course the rest of the United States.

Rank	Countries / U.S. State	2024 GDP (Millions)
1	🇺🇸 U.S.	$29,184,900
2	🇨🇳 China	$18,748,009
3	🇩🇪 Germany	$4,658,526
4	🇺🇸 California	$4,103,124
5	🇯🇵 Japan	$4,026,211
6	🇮🇳 India	$3,909,097
7	🇬🇧 UK	$3,644,636
8	🇫🇷 France	$3,162,023
9	🇺🇸 Texas	$2,709,393
10	🇮🇹 Italy	$2,372,059
11	🇺🇸 New York	$2,297,028
12	🇨🇦 Canada	$2,241,253
13	🇧🇷 Brazil	$2,171,337
14	🇷🇺 Russia	$2,161,205
15	🇰🇷 South Korea	$1,869,714
16	🇲🇽 Mexico	$1,852,723
17	🇦🇺 Australia	$1,796,805
18	🇪🇸 Spain	$1,722,227
19	🇺🇸 Florida	$1,705,565
20	🇮🇩 Indonesia	$1,396,300
21	🇹🇷 Türkiye	$1,322,405
22	🇳🇱 Netherlands	$1,227,174
23	🇺🇸 Illinois	$1,137,244
24	🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia	$1,085,358
25	🇺🇸 Pennsylvania	$1,024,206
26	🇨🇭 Switzerland	$936,738
27	🇺🇸 Ohio	$927,740
28	🇵🇱 Poland	$908,583
29	🇺🇸 Georgia	$882,535
30	🇺🇸 Washington	$854,683
31	🇺🇸 New Jersey	$846,587
32	🇺🇸 North Carolina	$839,122
33	🇹🇼 Taiwan	$782,441
34	🇺🇸 Massachusetts	$780,666
35	🇺🇸 Virginia	$764,475
36	🇺🇸 Michigan	$706,616
37	🇧🇪 Belgium	$664,965
38	🇦🇷 Argentina	$632,145
39	🇸🇪 Sweden	$610,118
40	🇮🇪 Ireland	$577,216
41	🇺🇸 Colorado	$553,323
42	🇺🇸 Arizona	$552,167
43	🇺🇸 Tennessee	$549,709
44	🇸🇬 Singapore	$547,387
45	🇺🇸 Maryland	$542,766
46	🇮🇱 Israel	$540,381
47	🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates	$537,079
48	🇺🇸 Indiana	$527,381
49	🇹🇭 Thailand	$526,411
50	🇦🇹 Austria	$521,269
51	🇺🇸 Minnesota	$500,851
52	🇳🇴 Norway	$483,727
53	🇵🇭 Philippines	$461,617
54	🇻🇳 Vietnam	$459,472
55	🇺🇸 Wisconsin	$451,285
56	🇺🇸 Missouri	$451,201
57	🇧🇩 Bangladesh	$451,096
58	🇩🇰 Denmark	$429,458
59	🇲🇾 Malaysia	$419,617
60	🇨🇴 Colombia	$418,542
61	🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR	$407,107
62	🇮🇷 Iran	$401,357
63	🇿🇦 South Africa	$400,191
64	🇷🇴 Romania	$384,148
65	🇪🇬 Egypt	$383,109
66	🇵🇰 Pakistan	$373,078
67	🇺🇸 Connecticut	$365,723
68	🇺🇸 South Carolina	$349,965
69	🇨🇿 Czech Republic	$344,931
70	🇺🇸 Oregon	$331,029
71	🇨🇱 Chile	$330,210
72	🇺🇸 Louisiana	$327,782
73	🇺🇸 Alabama	$321,238
74	🇵🇹 Portugal	$308,590
75	🇺🇸 Utah	$300,904
76	🇫🇮 Finland	$298,833
77	🇺🇸 Kentucky	$293,021
78	🇰🇿 Kazakhstan	$284,810
79	🇮🇶 Iraq	$277,478
80	🇺🇸 Oklahoma	$265,779
81	🇩🇿 Algeria	$264,913
82	🇺🇸 Nevada	$260,728
83	🇳🇿 New Zealand	$257,728
84	🇬🇷 Greece	$257,067
85	🇺🇸 Iowa	$257,021
86	🇺🇸 Kansas	$234,673
87	🇭🇺 Hungary	$223,060
88	🇶🇦 Qatar	$221,452
89	🇺🇦 Ukraine	$190,426
90	🇺🇸 Arkansas	$188,723
91	🇳🇬 Nigeria	$187,640
92	🇺🇸 District of Columbia	$186,165
93	🇺🇸 Nebraska	$185,411
94	🇰🇼 Kuwait	$158,568
95	🇺🇸 Mississippi	$157,491
96	🇲🇦 Morocco	$155,350
97	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	$143,123
98	🇸🇰 Slovak Republic	$140,636
99	🇺🇸 New Mexico	$140,542
100	🇺🇸 Idaho	$128,132
101	🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	$124,613
102	🇪🇨 Ecuador	$121,728
103	🇺🇸 New Hampshire	$121,189
104	🇵🇷 Puerto Rico	$120,978
105	🇰🇪 Kenya	$120,899
106	🇻🇪 Venezuela	$119,808
107	🇦🇴 Angola	$115,946
108	🇺🇸 Hawaii	$115,627
109	🇺🇿 Uzbekistan	$114,962
110	🇬🇹 Guatemala	$112,575
111	🇧🇬 Bulgaria	$112,232
112	🇺🇸 West Virginia	$107,660
113	🇴🇲 Oman	$106,943
114	🇺🇸 Delaware	$103,253
115	🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	$98,964
116	🇺🇸 Maine	$98,606
117	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	$95,365
118	🇱🇺 Luxembourg	$93,169
119	🇭🇷 Croatia	$92,506
120	🇷🇸 Serbia	$89,074
121	🇵🇦 Panama	$87,688
122	🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire	$87,096
123	🇱🇹 Lithuania	$84,847
124	🇬🇭 Ghana	$82,825
125	🇹🇲 Turkmenistan	$82,515
126	🇺🇸 Rhode Island	$82,493
127	🇺🇾 Uruguay	$80,961
128	🇹🇿 Tanzania	$80,171
129	🇺🇸 Montana	$75,999
130	🇺🇸 North Dakota	$75,399
131	🇺🇸 South Dakota	$75,179
132	🇦🇿 Azerbaijan	$74,316
133	🇸🇮 Slovenia	$72,463
134	🇧🇾 Belarus	$71,180
135	🇨🇩 DRC	$71,011
136	🇺🇸 Alaska	$69,969
137	🇲🇲 Myanmar	$61,176
138	🇺🇬 Uganda	$56,453
139	🇯🇴 Jordan	$53,428
140	🇹🇳 Tunisia	$53,063
141	🇺🇸 Wyoming	$52,946
142	🇨🇲 Cameroon	$52,784
143	🇲🇴 Macao SAR	$50,182
144	🇧🇴 Bolivia	$48,404
145	🇰🇭 Cambodia	$47,328
146	🇧🇭 Bahrain	$46,943
147	🇺🇸 Vermont	$45,707
148	🇵🇾 Paraguay	$43,989

This comparison uses the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ newly released 2024 GDP data, which shows California’s economy is $900 billion larger than Japan’s 2024 print at $4.02 trillion.

Of course the IMF has released 2025 predictive GDP figures. Japan’s output is higher now ($4.19 trillion), but California’s comparative figures won’t be released for another year.

Another footnote: India has also leapfrogged Japan in 2025 by IMF estimates. Depending on how California performs this year, it could retain its spot or slip back down to fifth place.

In total, nine U.S. states feature in the world’s top 30 economies as measured by their 2024 GDP. These include financial capital (New York), shale-boom central (Texas), other tech hubs (Washington), as well as population clusters (Florida and Georgia).

Vermont, the smallest U.S. state by GDP, would rank 147th in the world.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

Want a one-to-one comparison of which countries could replace U.S. states by their GDP? Check out: U.S. State Economies vs. Entire Countries for a quick overview.