The World Factbook

The World Factbook provides basic intelligence on the history, people, government, economy, energy, geography, environment, communications, transportation, military, terrorism, and transnational issues for 266 world entities.

Travel the globe with CIA’s World Factbook.

Edition: Sep 7, 2023

Fact of The Day

September 07, 2023

Mount Erebus

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What's New

More than 25,000 islands are estimated to lie scattered across the vast Pacific Ocean; they are frequently divided into three large cultural regions: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. To find out what countries and territories make up each of these regions refer to Appendix F: Geographic Names.

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Explore Countries

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Part of a flag display in one of the buildings of the UN Office in Vienna.

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The World & Its Regions

World

Africa

Antarctica

Australia and Oceania

Central America and the Caribbean

Central Asia

East and Southeast Asia

Europe

Middle East

North America

South America

South Asia

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Oceans

Arctic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

Indian Ocean

Pacific Ocean

Southern Ocean

Travel more intelligently with The World Factbook Travel Facts. Here’s what you should know about each country before you go.

Pressed for time? Check out our one-page summaries for essential information on each country.

Every flag has a story. View flags of all the world’s countries and territories to learn the symbolism behind each design.

Love data? The World Factbook has over 65 rank order pages that compare country data in specific fields.