Capitals of Africa

Africa has 54 capital cities. Below you'll find all African capitals on a map and in a list with their country and population. The largest is Kinshasa, the capital of Democratic Republic of the Congo; the smallest is Victoria in Seychelles.

Map of the capitals of Africa

Map of Africa with all 54 capital cities marked and labelled
All 54 capitals of Africa. Full-size PNG · SVG · Free to use with credit, see licence.

List of African capitals

All 54 countries of Africa and their capital city, in alphabetical order by country.

CountryCapitalPopulation
AlgeriaAlgiers2,364,230
AngolaLuanda8,330,047
BeninPorto-Novo264,320
BotswanaGaborone246,325
Burkina FasoOuagadougou2,415,266
BurundiGitega135,467
CameroonYaoundé4,164,296
Cape VerdePraia168,000
Central African RepublicBangui889,231
ChadN'Djamena1,605,696
ComorosMoroni62,100
Democratic Republic of the CongoKinshasa14,970,460
DjiboutiDjibouti623,891
EgyptCairo10,230,350
Equatorial GuineaCiudad de la Paz297,000
EritreaAsmara963,000
EswatiniMbabane94,874
EthiopiaAddis Ababa3,352,000
GabonLibreville797,003
GambiaBanjul31,301
GhanaAccra2,291,352
GuineaConakry1,667,864
Guinea-BissauBissau492,004
Ivory CoastYamoussoukro355,573
KenyaNairobi4,397,073
LesothoMaseru330,790
LiberiaMonrovia1,678,500
LibyaTripoli1,165,000
MadagascarAntananarivo3,058,800
MalawiLilongwe1,122,000
MaliBamako2,446,800
MauritaniaNouakchott1,195,600
MauritiusPort Louis149,194
MoroccoRabat1,777,000
MozambiqueMaputo1,101,170
NamibiaWindhoek431,000
NigerNiamey1,292,023
NigeriaAbuja3,464,000
Republic of the CongoBrazzaville2,230,821
RwandaKigali1,132,686
São Tomé and PríncipeSão Tomé80,000
SenegalDakar3,732,284
SeychellesVictoria26,450
Sierra LeoneFreetown1,136,000
SomaliaMogadishu2,610,483
South AfricaCape Town4,618,000
South SudanJuba525,953
SudanKhartoum5,274,321
TanzaniaDodoma410,956
TogoLomé1,746,000
TunisiaTunis2,291,352
UgandaKampala1,680,000
ZambiaLusaka2,731,696
ZimbabweHarare1,606,000

Largest and smallest African capitals

Largest by population

  1. Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo: 14,970,460
  2. Cairo, Egypt: 10,230,350
  3. Luanda, Angola: 8,330,047
  4. Khartoum, Sudan: 5,274,321
  5. Cape Town, South Africa: 4,618,000

Smallest by population

  1. Victoria, Seychelles: 26,450
  2. Banjul, Gambia: 31,301
  3. Moroni, Comoros: 62,100
  4. São Tomé, São Tomé and Príncipe: 80,000
  5. Mbabane, Eswatini: 94,874

Populations are estimates for the city itself, not the metropolitan area.

Which countries are included?

Africa has 54 independent countries, more than any other continent, and all of them are members of the United Nations. Egypt is listed here because Cairo lies in Africa. Western Sahara and Somaliland are not included.

Good to know

  • South Africa has three capitals: Pretoria (executive), Cape Town (legislative) and Bloemfontein (judicial). We list Cape Town.
  • In Ivory Coast, Yamoussoukro is the official capital, while Abidjan is the largest city and economic centre.
  • In Tanzania, Dodoma is the official capital, but Dar es Salaam is the largest city and home to many government offices.
  • For Equatorial Guinea we list Ciudad de la Paz, the planned capital on the mainland. Malabo, on the island of Bioko, has long been the seat of government.

Do you know them all?

Test yourself in the capital cities quiz: we name a country, you type its capital. Three levels, ten questions per round.

Play the capitals quiz

Frequently asked questions

  • How many capitals are there in Africa?

    Africa has 54 independent countries, more than any other continent, and all of them are members of the United Nations. Egypt is listed here because Cairo lies in Africa. Western Sahara and Somaliland are not included.

  • What is the largest capital city in Africa?

    Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of the Congo), with about 14,970,460 inhabitants in the city itself. It is followed by Cairo (Egypt) and Luanda (Angola).

  • What is the smallest capital city in Africa?

    Victoria (Seychelles), with about 26,450 inhabitants. Other small capitals in Africa are Banjul (Gambia) and Moroni (Comoros).

Capitals of other continents