The Regions of the United States at a Glance
The United States is usually divided into five regions in school: the Northeast (11 states), the Southeast (12), the Midwest (12), the Southwest (4) and the West (11). Each region has its own free map quiz here, with a states round and a capitals round. The US Census Bureau uses four regions instead.
- Regions taught in school
- 5
- Census Bureau regions
- 4
- Biggest region by states
- Southeast and Midwest, 12 each
- Smallest region
- Southwest, 4 states
- Same in both systems
- The Midwest
- Price
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Learning 50 states at once is hard. Learning five groups of about ten is much easier, which is why US schools teach the map by region. Pick a region below, play the states round until you can place every state, then switch to the capitals round.
Five Regions or Four?
There is no single official list of US regions for schools. The five region version on this page (Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, Southwest, West) is the one most textbooks and classroom maps use.
The US Census Bureau uses four regions: the Northeast (9 states), the Midwest (12), the South (16 plus Washington, D.C.) and the West (13). The differences: the Census puts Delaware and Maryland in the South, has no Southwest (Texas and Oklahoma go to the South, Arizona and New Mexico to the West), and merges the Southeast into its South. Only the Midwest is identical in both systems.
All 50 States by Region
Every state with its postal abbreviation, capital and region, in alphabetical order.
| # | State | Abbreviation | Capital | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama | AL | Montgomery | Southeast |
| 2 | Alaska | AK | Juneau | West |
| 3 | Arizona | AZ | Phoenix | Southwest |
| 4 | Arkansas | AR | Little Rock | Southeast |
| 5 | California | CA | Sacramento | West |
| 6 | Colorado | CO | Denver | West |
| 7 | Connecticut | CT | Hartford | Northeast |
| 8 | Delaware | DE | Dover | Northeast |
| 9 | Florida | FL | Tallahassee | Southeast |
| 10 | Georgia | GA | Atlanta | Southeast |
| 11 | Hawaii | HI | Honolulu | West |
| 12 | Idaho | ID | Boise | West |
| 13 | Illinois | IL | Springfield | Midwest |
| 14 | Indiana | IN | Indianapolis | Midwest |
| 15 | Iowa | IA | Des Moines | Midwest |
| 16 | Kansas | KS | Topeka | Midwest |
| 17 | Kentucky | KY | Frankfort | Southeast |
| 18 | Louisiana | LA | Baton Rouge | Southeast |
| 19 | Maine | ME | Augusta | Northeast |
| 20 | Maryland | MD | Annapolis | Northeast |
| 21 | Massachusetts | MA | Boston | Northeast |
| 22 | Michigan | MI | Lansing | Midwest |
| 23 | Minnesota | MN | Saint Paul | Midwest |
| 24 | Mississippi | MS | Jackson | Southeast |
| 25 | Missouri | MO | Jefferson City | Midwest |
| 26 | Montana | MT | Helena | West |
| 27 | Nebraska | NE | Lincoln | Midwest |
| 28 | Nevada | NV | Carson City | West |
| 29 | New Hampshire | NH | Concord | Northeast |
| 30 | New Jersey | NJ | Trenton | Northeast |
| 31 | New Mexico | NM | Santa Fe | Southwest |
| 32 | New York | NY | Albany | Northeast |
| 33 | North Carolina | NC | Raleigh | Southeast |
| 34 | North Dakota | ND | Bismarck | Midwest |
| 35 | Ohio | OH | Columbus | Midwest |
| 36 | Oklahoma | OK | Oklahoma City | Southwest |
| 37 | Oregon | OR | Salem | West |
| 38 | Pennsylvania | PA | Harrisburg | Northeast |
| 39 | Rhode Island | RI | Providence | Northeast |
| 40 | South Carolina | SC | Columbia | Southeast |
| 41 | South Dakota | SD | Pierre | Midwest |
| 42 | Tennessee | TN | Nashville | Southeast |
| 43 | Texas | TX | Austin | Southwest |
| 44 | Utah | UT | Salt Lake City | West |
| 45 | Vermont | VT | Montpelier | Northeast |
| 46 | Virginia | VA | Richmond | Southeast |
| 47 | Washington | WA | Olympia | West |
| 48 | West Virginia | WV | Charleston | Southeast |
| 49 | Wisconsin | WI | Madison | Midwest |
| 50 | Wyoming | WY | Cheyenne | West |
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the 5 regions of the United States?
The Northeast, the Southeast, the Midwest, the Southwest and the West. This is the grouping most US schools teach.
What are the 4 Census regions?
The Northeast, the Midwest, the South and the West. The Census Bureau uses them for statistics.
Which region has the most states?
In the five region system, the Southeast and the Midwest tie with 12 states each. In the Census system, the South has 16.
Which region are Alaska and Hawaii in?
The West, in both the school and the Census systems.
Are the region quizzes free?
Yes. Every region quiz runs in your browser, on a phone or a computer, with no download and no account.
Made by Kashif Sulehria in Lahore, Pakistan. Updated September 28, 2026.