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Capitals of All Asian Countries

This table lists the capital city of each of the 49 Asian countries, alphabetically by country, with notes where the situation is not straightforward. In most of Asia the capital is also the largest city, but there are many exceptions, and a few capitals are disputed or in transition.

To see them on a map, try the interactive Asian capitals page or test yourself with the Asia map quiz.

Country	Capital	Sub-region	Note
Afghanistan	Kabul	South Asia
Armenia	Yerevan	West Asia
Azerbaijan	Baku	West Asia
Bahrain	Manama	West Asia
Bangladesh	Dhaka	South Asia
Bhutan	Thimphu	South Asia
Brunei	Bandar Seri Begawan	Southeast Asia
Cambodia	Phnom Penh	Southeast Asia
China	Beijing	East Asia	Shanghai is the largest city
Cyprus	Nicosia	West Asia	Divided city; the north is under Turkish Cypriot administration
Georgia	Tbilisi	West Asia
India	New Delhi	South Asia	Mumbai and Delhi are the largest urban areas
Indonesia	Jakarta	Southeast Asia	A new capital, Nusantara, is being built on Borneo; Jakarta remains the official capital
Iran	Tehran	South Asia
Iraq	Baghdad	West Asia
Israel	Jerusalem	West Asia	Status disputed; most foreign embassies are in Tel Aviv
Japan	Tokyo	East Asia
Jordan	Amman	West Asia
Kazakhstan	Astana	Central Asia	Capital since 1997, replacing Almaty (still the largest city); called Nur-Sultan 2019–2022
Kuwait	Kuwait City	West Asia
Kyrgyzstan	Bishkek	Central Asia
Laos	Vientiane	Southeast Asia
Lebanon	Beirut	West Asia
Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur	Southeast Asia	Many government offices are in Putrajaya
Maldives	Malé	South Asia
Mongolia	Ulaanbaatar	East Asia
Myanmar	Naypyidaw	Southeast Asia	Capital since 2005–06 (from Yangon, still the largest city)
Nepal	Kathmandu	South Asia
North Korea	Pyongyang	East Asia
Oman	Muscat	West Asia
Pakistan	Islamabad	South Asia	Purpose-built in the 1960s; Karachi is the largest city
Palestine	Ramallah	West Asia	Administrative centre; Palestine claims East Jerusalem as its capital
Philippines	Manila	Southeast Asia	Quezon City, in the same metro area, has more people
Qatar	Doha	West Asia
Saudi Arabia	Riyadh	West Asia
Singapore	Singapore	Southeast Asia
South Korea	Seoul	East Asia
Sri Lanka	Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte	South Asia	Legislative capital; Colombo is the commercial capital and largest city
Syria	Damascus	West Asia
Taiwan	Taipei	East Asia	Seat of government; New Taipei has more people
Tajikistan	Dushanbe	Central Asia
Thailand	Bangkok	Southeast Asia
Timor-Leste	Dili	Southeast Asia
Turkey	Ankara	West Asia	Capital since 1923; Istanbul is the largest city
Turkmenistan	Ashgabat	Central Asia
United Arab Emirates	Abu Dhabi	West Asia	Dubai is the largest city
Uzbekistan	Tashkent	Central Asia
Vietnam	Hanoi	Southeast Asia	Ho Chi Minh City is the largest city
Yemen	Sanaʽa	West Asia	Held by the Houthi movement; the recognised government is based in Aden

Notable cases

• Planned capitals. Several countries have moved their government to a purpose-built city: Islamabad (Pakistan, 1960s), Astana (Kazakhstan, 1997), Naypyidaw (Myanmar, 2005–06) and Putrajaya, Malaysia's administrative centre. Indonesia is building Nusantara on Borneo to take over from Jakarta.
• Capital is not the largest city in China (Shanghai), Pakistan (Karachi), Turkey (Istanbul), Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City), Kazakhstan (Almaty), Myanmar (Yangon), Sri Lanka (Colombo) and the UAE (Dubai), among others.
• Disputed or divided capitals. Israel's designation of Jerusalem is not recognised by most countries, and Palestine claims East Jerusalem while its government works from Ramallah. In Yemen, Sana'a has been held by the Houthis since 2014. Nicosia, in Cyprus, is the world's last divided capital.
• Two-part capitals. Sri Lanka's parliament sits in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, a suburb of Colombo, while most other functions remain in Colombo.

Sources: Capitals as officially designated by each government; see notes for disputed cases.

Country count: the 49 countries covered on AsiaMap.net (47 UN member states in Asia plus Palestine and Taiwan; Russia is classed as European). Last reviewed October 2026.