Country Abbreviations: A Comprehensive List By Continent

By
, Staff Writer
Updated March 28, 2022
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Country names can change, but their country codes stay the same no matter what. This is why country codes are an important international standard. Groups like national postal organizations rely on the country code system to ensure everyone is talking about the same place. Our list of 2-letter and 3-letter country codes organized by continent will ensure you’re on the same page as the rest of the world.

Origins of Country Code Abbreviations

All countries are represented by a 2-letter and 3-letter country code based on the International Naming Convention (ISO - International Organization for Standardization 3166). The 2-letter code is meant for more general purposes, while the 3-letter code more closely resembles the country’s name.

These short codes are intuitive, so they can be used as a universal and instant informative representation of each country. The abbreviations are used in postal services, world currencies, travel and business activities, and web address identification.

Africa Country Abbreviations

There are 54 undisputed countries in Africa, a continent that occupies about 20% of Earth’s total land area.

Country Name

2-Letter (alpha 2 code)

3-Letter (alpha 3 code)

Algeria

DZ

DZA

Angola

AO

AGO

Benin

BJ

BEN

Botswana

BW

BWA

Burkina Faso

BF

BFA

Burundi

BI

BDI

Cameroon

CM

CMR

Cape Verde

CV

CPV

The Central African Republic

CF

CAF

Chad

TD

TCD

The Comoros

KM

COM

Congo, Democratic Republic of

CD

COD

Côte d'Ivoire

CI

CIV

Djibouti

DJ

DJI

Egypt

EG

EGY

Equatorial Guinea

GQ

GNQ

Eritrea

ER

ERI

Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland

SZ

SWZ

Ethiopia

ET

ETH

Gabon

GA

GAB

Gambia

GM

GMB

Ghana

GH

GHA

Guinea

GN

GIN

Guinea-Bissau

GW

GNB

Kenya

KE

KEN

Lesotho

LS

LSO

Liberia

LR

LBR

Madagascar

MG

MDG

Malawi

MW

MWI

Mali

ML

MLI

Mauritania

MR

MRT

Mauritius

MU

MUS

Mayotte

YT

MYT

Morocco

MA

MAR

Mozambique

MZ

MOZ

Namibia

NA

NAM

Niger

NE

NER

Nigeria

NG

NGA

Reunion

RE

REU

Rwanda

RW

RWA

Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha

SH

SHN

Sao Tome and Principe

ST

STP

Senegal

SN

SEN

Seychelles

SC

SYC

Sierra Leone

SL

SLE

Somalia

SO

SOM

South Africa

ZA

ZAF

South Sudan

SS

SSD

The Sudan

SD

SDN

Tanzania

TZ

TZA

Togo

TG

TGO

Tunisia

TN

TUN

Uganda

UG

UGA

Western Sahara

EH

ESH

Zambia

ZM

ZMB

Zimbabwe

ZW

ZWE

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Antarctic Country Codes

While Antarctica is a continent, it is also just one country. There are, however, several islands in the Antarctic Region that can be considered part of the continent of Antarctica.

Country Name

2-Letter (alpha 2 code)

3-Letter (alpha 3 code)

Antarctica

AQ

ATA

Bouvet Island

BV

BVT

French Southern Territories

TF

ATF

Heard Island and McDonald Islands

HM

HMD

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

GS

SGS

Australia & Oceania Country Codes

Australia is both a country and a continent, while Oceania is the region where Australia and many other island nations are found.

Country Name

2-Letter (alpha 2 code)

3-Letter (alpha 3 code)

American Samoa

AS

ASM

Australia

AU

AUS

Cook Islands

CK

COK

Fiji

FJ

FJI

French Polynesia

PF

PYF

Guam

GU

GUM

Kiribati

KI

KIR

Marshall Islands

MH

MHL

Micronesia

FM

FSM

Nauru

NR

NRU

New Caledonia

NC

NCL

New Zealand

NZ

NZL

Niue

NU

NIU

Norfolk Island

NF

NFK

Northern Mariana Islands

MP

MNP

Palau

PW

PLW

Papua New Guinea

PG

PNG

Pitcairn Islands

PN

PCN

Samoa

WS

WSM

Solomon Islands

SB

SLB

Tokelau

TK

TKL

Tonga, Kingdom of

TO

TON

Tuvalu

TV

TUV

United States Minor Outlying Islands

UM

UMI

Vanuatu

VU

VUT

Wallis and Futuna

WF

WLF

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Asia Country Codes

As the largest continent by both population and area, compiling a list of Asian countries is no simple task. Depending on the list you consult, there are about 48-53 countries in Asia. We’ve provided the country codes for 53.

Country Name

2-Letter (alpha 2 code)

3-Letter (alpha 3 code)

Afghanistan

AF

AFG

Azerbaijan

AZ

AZE

Bahrain

BH

BHR

Bangladesh

BD

BGD

Bhutan

BT

BTN

British Indian Ocean Territory

IO

IOT

Brunei Darussalam

BN

BRN

Cambodia

KH

KHM

China, People's Republic of

CN

CHN

Christmas Island

CX

CXR

Cocos (Keeling) Islands

CC

CCK

Cyprus

CY

CYP

Georgia

GE

GEO

Hong Kong

HK

HKG

India

IN

IND

Indonesia

ID

IDN

Iran, Islamic Republic of

IR

IRN

Iraq

IQ

IRQ

Israel

IL

ISR

Japan

JP

JPN

Jordan

JO

JOR

Kazakhstan

KZ

KAZ

Korea, Democratic People's Republic of

KP

PRK

Korea, Republic of

KR

KOR

Kuwait

KW

KWT

Kyrgyzstan

KG

KGZ

Lao People's Democratic Republic

LA

LAO

Lebanon

LB

LBN

Macao

MO

MAC

Malaysia

MY

MYS

Maldives

MV

MDV

Mongolia

MN

MNG

Myanmar

MM

MMR

Nepal

NP

NPL

Oman

OM

OMN

Pakistan

PK

PAK

Palestinian Territory

PS

PSE

Philippines

PH

PHL

Qatar

QA

QAT

Saudi Arabia

SA

SAU

Singapore

SG

SGP

Sri Lanka

LK

LKA

Syrian Arab Republic

SY

SYR

Taiwan

TW

TWN

Tajikistan

TJ

TJK

Thailand

TH

THA

Timor-Leste

TL

TLS

Turkey

TR

TUR

Turkmenistan

TM

TKM

United Arab Emirates

AE

ARE

Uzbekistan

UZ

UZB

Vietnam

VN

VNM

Yemen

YE

YEM

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Europe Country Codes

Europe consists of 52 countries, some of which are part of the European Union — a group with its own set of country abbreviations.

Country Name

2-Letter (alpha 2 code)

3-Letter (alpha 3 code)

Aland Islands

AX

ALA

Albania

AL

ALB

Andorra

AD

AND

Armenia

AM

ARM

Austria

AT

AUT

Belarus

BY

BLR

Belgium

BE

BEL

Bosnia and Herzegovina

BA

BIH

Bulgaria, Republic of

BG

BGR

Croatia

HR

HRV

Czech Republic (Czechia)

CZ

CZE

Denmark

DK

DNK

Estonia

EE

EST

Faroe Islands

FO

FRO

Finland

FI

FIN

France

FR

FRA

Germany

DE

DEU

Gibraltar

GI

GIB

Greece

GR

GRC

Guernsey

GG

GGY

Holy See (Vatican City State)

VA

VAT

Hungary

HU

HUN

Iceland

IS

ISL

Ireland

IE

IRL

Isle of Man

IM

IMN

Italy

IT

ITA

Jersey

JE

JEY

Latvia

LV

LVA

Liechtenstein

LI

LIE

Lithuania

LT

LTU

Luxembourg

LU

LUX

Republic of North Macedonia

MK

MKD

Malta

MT

MLT

Moldova

MD

MDA

Monaco

MC

MCO

Montenegro

ME

MNE

Netherlands

NL

NLD

Norway

NO

NOR

Poland

PL

POL

Portugal

PT

PRT

Romania

RO

ROU

Russian Federation

RU

RUS

San Marino

SM

SMR

Serbia

RS

SRB

Slovakia (Slovak Republic)

SK

SVK

Slovenia

SI

SVN

Spain

ES

ESP

Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands

SJ

SJM

Sweden

SE

SWE

Switzerland

CH

CHE

Ukraine

UA

UKR

United Kingdom

GB

GBR

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North American Country Codes

The continent of North America goes far beyond the U.S., Mexico and Canada. It includes over 30 countries when you count Caribbean and Central American countries.

Country Name

2-Letter (alpha 2 code)

3-Letter (alpha 3 code)

Anguilla

AI

AIA

Aruba

AW

ABW

Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba

BQ

BES

Canada

CA

CAN

Cuba

CU

CUB

Curaçao

CW

CUW

Dominica

DM

DMA

Dominican Republic

DO

DOM

El Salvador

SV

SLV

Greenland

GL

GRL

Grenada

GD

GRD

Guadeloupe

GP

GLP

Guatemala

GT

GTM

Haiti

HT

HTI

Honduras

HN

HND

Jamaica

JM

JAM

Martinique

MQ

MTQ

Mexico

MX

MEX

Montserrat

MS

MSR

Netherlands Antilles

AN

ANT

Nicaragua

NI

NIC

Panama

PA

PAN

Puerto Rico

PR

PRI

Saint Barthelemy

BL

BLM

Saint Kitts and Nevis

KN

KNA

Saint Lucia

LC

LCA

Saint Martin

MF

MAF

Saint Pierre and Miquelon

PM

SPM

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

VC

VCT

Sint Maarten (Netherlands)

SX

SXM

Trinidad and Tobago

TT

TTO

Turks and Caicos Islands

TC

TCA

United States Minor Outlying Islands

UM

UMI

United States of America

US

USA

United States Virgin Islands

VI

VIR

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South America Country Codes

The continent of South America only includes 12 countries. However, three territories also call South America home.

Country Name

2-Letter (alpha 2 code)

3-Letter (alpha 3 code)

Argentina

AR

ARG

Bolivia

BO

BOL

Brazil

BR

BRA

Chile

CL

CHL

Colombia

CO

COL

Ecuador

EC

ECU

Falkland Islands (Malvinas)

FK

FLK

French Guiana

GF

GUF

Guyana

GY

GUY

Paraguay

PY

PRY

Peru

PE

PER

Suriname

SR

SUR

Uruguay

UY

URY

Venezuela

VE

VEN

Abbreviations Abound

International abbreviations help keep the world on the same page. Explore more abbreviations that might come in handy for your international affairs: