How Many Countries Start With B? I Named 10 and Missed 7 (Can You Beat Me?)

i will be honest with you. last night i sat on my couch and tried to name every country that starts with the letter B. i thought it would take me two minutes. it did not.

i got to about ten and then my brain just stopped. i had Brazil, Belgium, Bangladesh, the easy ones. but then nothing. countries like Burkina Faso and Burundi were hiding somewhere in the back of my head and would not come out.

turns out there are 17 countries in the world that start with B. seventeen! so i built this little quiz to test myself, and now i am sharing it with you. lets see if you can beat my score.

What Is This Quiz About?

this quiz covers all 17 countries that start with the letter B. each question gives you a small clue, like a capital city or something the country is famous for, and you have to type the name of the country.

you will travel from the beaches of the Bahamas to the chocolate shops of Belgium, from the giant salt flats of Bolivia to the busy streets of Dhaka in Bangladesh. it is like a mini trip around the world without leaving your chair.

there is no timer, so take your time. every question comes with a hint if you get stuck, and a short explanation after you answer, so you learn something new even when you get one wrong.

How To Play This Quiz

playing is really simple. here is all you need to do:

1. Read the clue. it might mention a capital city, a famous place, or a fun fact.
2. Type the name of the country in the answer box. do not worry too much about perfect spelling.
3. Hit submit and read the explanation. that is where the interesting facts are hiding.
4. Try to get all 17. i dare you.

you can play on your phone or your laptop. and if you get stuck, use the hint button. no shame in it. i used it twice.

The Complete List: Every Country That Starts With B

here is the full answer list. no peeking until you have tried the quiz first. okay, peek a little if you must.

Country	Capital / Famous For
Bahamas	Nassau – Caribbean beaches and clear blue water
Bahrain	Small island nation in the Persian Gulf, known for oil and finance
Bangladesh	Dhaka – one of the most densely populated countries on Earth
Barbados	Caribbean island, birthplace of Rihanna
Belarus	Minsk – landlocked country in Eastern Europe
Belgium	Brussels – famous for chocolate, waffles and the EU headquarters
Belize	Belmopan – home to the world’s second largest barrier reef
Benin	Porto-Novo – once the Kingdom of Dahomey in West Africa
Bhutan	Himalayan kingdom that measures Gross National Happiness
Bolivia	Sucre and La Paz – famous for the Salar de Uyuni salt flats
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Sarajevo – hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics
Botswana	Gaborone – famous for the Okavango Delta and elephants
Brazil	Largest country in South America – football and the Amazon rainforest
Brunei	Small oil rich nation on the island of Borneo
Bulgaria	Sofia – one of the oldest cities in Europe
Burkina Faso	Ouagadougou – landlocked country in West Africa
Burundi	Gitega – small landlocked country in East Africa

Fun Facts And Stats

i love numbers, so here are some real facts about the B countries that surprised me:

• Out of 195 countries in the world, only 17 start with B. that is less than 9 percent.
• Brazil is the giant of the group. it covers about 8.5 million square kilometres, making it the fifth largest country on the planet.
• Bangladesh is one of the most crowded places on Earth, with more than 1,100 people living in every square kilometre.
• Bahrain is tiny by comparison. the whole country is only about 780 square kilometres, and around 1.6 million people live there.
• Bolivia has two capitals: Sucre and La Paz. La Paz sits about 3,640 metres above sea level, one of the highest capitals in the world.
• The Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia is the largest salt flat on Earth, stretching over 10,500 square kilometres. it is so flat that scientists use it to calibrate satellites.
• Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, hosted the Winter Olympics in 1984.
• Bhutan officially measures Gross National Happiness. it is the only country in the world that does this.
• The Belize Barrier Reef runs about 300 kilometres along the coast. it is the second largest barrier reef system in the world.
• Belgium produces around 220,000 tonnes of chocolate every single year. that is a serious amount of chocolate.

Why Do So Few Countries Start With B?

you might think B is a common letter, but in the world of country names it is pretty average. some letters have way fewer. only 3 countries start with F, and only 9 start with E.

country names come from hundreds of different languages, so the first letters are spread out in a weird way. S is the most common starting letter with over 30 countries. B sits somewhere in the middle with its 17, which honestly feels like a fair number.

The Tricky Ones Most People Miss

almost everyone gets Brazil and Belgium. the ones that trip people up are the smaller African countries: Burkina Faso, Burundi, Benin and Botswana. they all start with B and they all sit in Africa, so they blur together in your memory.

another tricky pair is Bahrain and Brunei. both are small, both are rich from oil, and both start with Br. one sits in the Persian Gulf and the other sits on the island of Borneo. i mixed them up twice while making this quiz.

and do not forget Bosnia and Herzegovina. it is a long name, so a lot of people just call it Bosnia. the quiz accepts that as an answer, by the way.

Smart Tips For Teachers, Parents And Quiz Fans Exploring Countries That Start With B

if you are a teacher, this quiz makes a great five minute warm up for a geography lesson. let the class play it on their phones and see who gets the highest score.

parents, you can turn the answer table above into flashcards. country on one side, capital on the other. kids remember things much faster when it feels like a game.

here is a trick that helped me: learn the B countries in groups by region. the Caribbean pair is the Bahamas and Barbados. the European group is Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Africa has Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso and Burundi. Asia has Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Brunei. and the Americas have Bolivia, Brazil and Belize. grouping them like this makes 17 feel a lot smaller.

Conclusion

so, how many did you get? if you beat my score of ten, i am genuinely impressed. if you got all 17, you are officially smarter than me when it comes to geography, and i accept that.

send this quiz to a friend and challenge them. nothing starts a fun argument like asking someone to name all the countries that start with B. most people will run out of answers way sooner than they expect.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many countries start with the letter B?

There are 17 sovereign countries that start with B, out of 195 countries in the world.

What is the biggest country that starts with B?

Brazil. it covers about 8.5 million square kilometres and is the fifth largest country on Earth.

Which country that starts with B has two capitals?

Bolivia. Sucre is the constitutional capital and La Paz is the seat of government.

What is the smallest country starting with B?

Bahrain is the smallest by land area at around 780 square kilometres. Brunei is also very small.

Is this quiz good for kids?

Yes. the clues are simple, there are hints for every question, and each answer comes with a short explanation that teaches a fun fact.

Can i play this quiz more than once?

Of course. play it as many times as you like. most people do better on the second try because the explanations help the answers stick.