Everyone knows Russia is first. Second place onward is where it gets interesting. Ranks 11 to 20 start revealed; fill the hidden top ten from 10th place upward, with three extra tries per rank.
How it works
- Press START and a ranking board from 1st to 20th appears on the left. Ranks 11 to 20 are shown from the start; ranks 1 to 10 are hidden.
- On the right are ten shuffled cards: the hidden top-10 countrys. None of them overlaps with the visible ranks 11 to 20, so which countrys are in the top ten is settled; the question is the order.
- You guess from 10th place upward. When "Who is #10?" appears, tap a card. A correct pick slides into that row on the left and reveals its figure.
- A wrong pick does not reveal the answer. The card shakes red and you lose one try, leaving three more tries for that rank. Only after four wrong picks is the answer revealed, and the row is marked as missed.
- Continue through 9th, 8th… up to 1st. Your score is the number of ranks solved plus a miss count, and each row shows on which try you got it. The search box under the results ranks any entry in the full list, even outside the top 20.
Scoring and records
The score is the number of ranks solved, out of ten; wrong picks are counted separately as misses. Between two perfect runs, fewer misses is the better record, and your best is saved in this browser. The visible figures for ranks 11 to 20 are your hints: the 10th-place value must be at least the 11th, so use the lower ranks to judge which country sits near the border. As you climb, fewer cards remain and 1st place is settled by elimination, so the real contest is getting 10th through 2nd right without a miss.
What counts as area
The ranking uses total area: land plus inland water such as lakes and rivers, as compiled by the UN Statistics Division and published in the standard reference list. Only sovereign states are ranked, so large territories such as Greenland are not candidates.
Definitions change the order in one famous spot: third and fourth place. By UN total area China (about 9.60 million km²) is ahead of the United States (about 9.53 million km²). Sources that include coastal and some territorial waters, as the US government does, put the United States at about 9.83 million km² and ahead of China. That is why some references list the US third and others fourth. This quiz follows the UN figures.
Russia, at roughly 17.1 million km², is more than 1.7 times the size of second-placed Canada (about 9.98 million km²) and covers about 11 percent of the world's land. Lower down, the top 20 includes countries that rarely make headlines for size: Kazakhstan, Algeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Saudi Arabia all exceed two million km² and catch many players out.
Finding your own country
The search box under the results looks up the full list. The United Kingdom, for example, is about 244,000 km², Japan about 378,000 km², and South Korea about 100,000 km², which places it 107th of 195. Comparing your country with the giants at the top puts the scale in perspective: South Korea would fit into Russia about 170 times.
Frequently asked questions
Why start from 10th place?
Almost everyone knows number one, so starting there makes the first question trivial, and with a shrinking pool the last pick would be automatic. Going upward, you tackle the hardest ranks around 10th while the pool is full, and finish by choosing 1st from what is left.
Does a wrong pick reveal the answer?
No. You get up to four picks per rank (one plus three more tries). A wrong card stays in the pool because it may be right for another rank, and the answer is revealed only after four wrong picks.
Is 1st place automatic at the end?
Yes. With one card left, 1st place is settled. That is why the score tops out at ten and records are separated by misses. The real goal is to get 10th through 2nd right without a miss, and the result board shows on which try you solved each rank.
Why do the figures differ from another site?
Total area, land area and area including territorial waters give different numbers for the same country. This page uses UN total area and links its source under the answer table. Disputed territories follow the source's treatment.
Can I share my score?
The share button on the result screen copies a message with your score and a link to this page, or opens your device's share sheet. Friends can play the same quiz without signing up.
Related quizzes
- World Population Ranking Quiz — big countries with small populations, and the reverse.
- Average Height by Country Quiz — another ranking where the top ten surprises most people.
- Unit Converter — square kilometres to square miles, acres and more.
Full top 20
As of: UN statistics, total area · Source: UN Statistics Division via Wikipedia
Show the top 20 answer table (spoiler)
| Rank | Name | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇷🇺 Russia | 17,098,246 km² |
| 2 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 9,984,670 km² |
| 3 | 🇨🇳 China | 9,596,960 km² |
| 4 | 🇺🇸 United States | 9,525,067 km² |
| 5 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 8,510,346 km² |
| 6 | 🇦🇺 Australia | 7,741,220 km² |
| 7 | 🇮🇳 India | 3,287,263 km² |
| 8 | 🇦🇷 Argentina | 2,780,400 km² |
| 9 | 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | 2,724,910 km² |
| 10 | 🇩🇿 Algeria | 2,381,741 km² |
| 11 | 🇨🇩 DR Congo | 2,344,858 km² |
| 12 | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 2,149,690 km² |
| 13 | 🇲🇽 Mexico | 1,964,375 km² |
| 14 | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | 1,904,569 km² |
| 15 | 🇸🇩 Sudan | 1,878,000 km² |
| 16 | 🇱🇾 Libya | 1,759,540 km² |
| 17 | 🇮🇷 Iran | 1,648,195 km² |
| 18 | 🇲🇳 Mongolia | 1,564,116 km² |
| 19 | 🇵🇪 Peru | 1,285,216 km² |
| 20 | 🇹🇩 Chad | 1,284,000 km² |