The Western States Quiz at a Glance
A free map quiz of the 11 Western states: Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Alaska and Hawaii. Find each state on the map, then find each state from its capital. Ten questions a round, no sign up.
- States in the quiz
- 11
- Region
- The Pacific coast, the Rockies, Alaska and Hawaii
- Rounds
- States, then capitals
- Questions per round
- 10
- Census Bureau region
- West (13 states, with Arizona and New Mexico)
- Price
- Free, no sign up
How to Play the Western States Quiz
- Click any state on the map to see its name, before you start a round. It is a good way to look over the West first.
- Pick a round. In States, a state is named and you click it. In Capitals, a capital is named and you click its state.
- There is no time limit, and the right state turns green after every answer.
- After ten questions you get your score. The table under the map has every state, its abbreviation and its capital.
What Makes It Different
- Alaska and Hawaii are included, drawn as insets the way US maps usually show them.
- A capitals round as well as a states round, with the capital as the question.
- The full list of states, abbreviations and capitals sits right under the game.
- Free on a phone or a computer, with no account.
The West has the biggest states in the country: Alaska is the largest of all, and California, Montana and Nevada are among the ten largest. The Pacific states run down the coast, and the Mountain states sit behind them along the Rockies.
The Capitals That Catch People Out
The West has more surprise capitals than any other region. Washington's is Olympia, not Seattle. Oregon's is Salem, not Portland. California's is Sacramento, not Los Angeles or San Francisco, and Nevada's is Carson City, not Las Vegas. Montana's is Helena.
Alaska's capital, Juneau, cannot be reached by road from the rest of the state; you fly or take a boat. Hawaii's capital is Honolulu, on the island of Oahu.
West or Pacific and Mountain?
The US Census Bureau counts 13 Western states, the 11 here plus Arizona and New Mexico, and splits them into a Pacific division and a Mountain division. Most school maps move Arizona and New Mexico into a separate Southwest instead, which is the grouping this quiz uses.
States and Capitals of the West
In alphabetical order, with the two letter postal abbreviation.
| # | State | Abbreviation | Capital |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | AK | Juneau |
| 2 | California | CA | Sacramento |
| 3 | Colorado | CO | Denver |
| 4 | Hawaii | HI | Honolulu |
| 5 | Idaho | ID | Boise |
| 6 | Montana | MT | Helena |
| 7 | Nevada | NV | Carson City |
| 8 | Oregon | OR | Salem |
| 9 | Utah | UT | Salt Lake City |
| 10 | Washington | WA | Olympia |
| 11 | Wyoming | WY | Cheyenne |
Frequently Asked Questions
How many Western states are there?
Eleven in the grouping most schools use: Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, Alaska and Hawaii. The Census Bureau counts 13, adding Arizona and New Mexico.
What is the capital of California?
Sacramento.
What is the capital of Washington state?
Olympia. Seattle is the largest city but not the capital.
Why are Alaska and Hawaii in a box on the map?
They are far from the other 48 states, so US maps draw them as insets in the lower left to keep everything on one page. They are not to scale.
Is the Western states quiz free?
Yes. It 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.