How Many Countries Are There In North America?

If you google “how many countries there are in North America?” you will most likely get the answer that there are 23 countries in North America and I can only agree that. There are in total 23 countries in North America. However, when it comes to defining countries in North America, there is a lot of confusion about what you actually can count as a country. Are for example the Caribean islands Puerto Rico and Aruba considered to be countries? or are they even in North America? and what about Greenland is it a country and is it located in Europe or North America? In this blog post, I aim to give you the answer to all of those questions.

In my blog post “how many countries are there in the world?” I define what constitutes a country, so if you want to refresh you memory I suggest that you have quick read-through again. However to give you a short summary, a country needs to fulfil the following criteria in order to be considered an independent state.

1. have a permanent population,
2. have a defined territory,
3. have a government,
4. have the capacity to engage diplomatically with other states.
5. be internationally recognized by other recognized states

Now, read on to see how we actually define the North American continent

Defining North America

First thing first, let’s define the actual geographical borders of what actually makes out the North American continent:

• North: The Arctic Ocean
  
• East: The Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea
  
• South: The boundary with South America is generally considered to be the Isthmus of Panama
  
• West: The Pacific Ocean.

Contrary to what you might think, both Central America and the Caribbean are considered to be part of North America. Geographically, North America extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Isthmus of Panama in the south, which places Central America on the North American continents. The Caribbean islands are also considered to be part of the North American continent with Trinidad and Tobago, located in close proximity to Venezuela, being the frontier to the South American continent.

What about Greenland?

Although technically not a country, Greenland – an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark is actually located in North America, contrary to common belief. This is mainly due to its geographical proximity to the Canadian Arctic and its location on the North American tectonic plate. While politically and administratively associated with Denmark, Greenland’s geological and geographical characteristics align it more closely with the North American continent.

What Does The UN say?

The United Nations geoscheme classifies the continent of North America into three intermediate regions: the Caribbean, Central America, and Northern America. This classification includes 23 countries, spanning these three regions.

Northern America (3)

1. Canada
2. United States
3. Mexico

Central American countries (7):

4. Belize
5. Costa Rica
6. El Salvador
7. Guatemala
8. Honduras
9. Nicaragua
10. Panama

Caribbean countries (13):

11. Antigua and Barbuda
12. Bahamas
13. Barbados
14. Cuba
15. Dominica
16. Dominican Republic
17. Grenada
18. Haiti
19. Jamaica
20. Saint Kitts and Nevis
21. Saint Lucia
22. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
23. Trinidad and Tobago

When combining these regions, North America consists of 23 countries according to UN.

Disputed Territories

In North America, there are no disputed territories comparable in status to places like Kosovo in Europe, Taiwan or South Ossetia in Asia, that claim their own independence. Most North American countries have well-established and internationally recognized borders, with disputes typically being limited to specific and relatively small areas, often in maritime or remote regions.

Probably the most notable disputed territory in North America is the one over Hans Island between Canada and Denmark. Both parts claim this small, uninhabited island in the Nares Strait since the 1970s. The conflict is marked by symbolic gestures like exchanging flags, with no resolution yet achieved.

Dependent Territories That People Think Are Countries

In North America, there are several dependent territories that some people might mistakenly believe are sovereign countries, however, these territories are under the jurisdiction and sovereignty of other countries and hence are NOT considered to be countries. Here’s a list of these territories:

1. Greenland – an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark.
   
2. Bermuda – a British Overseas Territory.
   
3. Cayman Islands – a British Overseas Territory.
   
4. Turks and Caicos Islands – a British Overseas Territory.
   
5. British Virgin Islands – a British Overseas Territory.
   
6. Anguilla – a British Overseas Territory.
   
7. Montserrat – a British Overseas Territory.
   
8. Puerto Rico – an unincorporated territory of the United States.
   
9. U.S. Virgin Islands – an unincorporated territory of the United States.
   
10. Guam – an unincorporated territory of the United States.
    
11. American Samoa – an unincorporated territory of the United States.
    
12. Northern Mariana Islands – a commonwealth in political union with the United States.
    
13. Saint Pierre and Miquelon – a French overseas collectivity.
    
14. Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten – constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
    
15. Bonaire, Saba, and Sint Eustatius – special municipalities of the Netherlands.

These territories are not independent sovereign states but are territories of other nations, having varying degrees of autonomy and self-governance.

Conclusion

So there you have it 23 countries in total in North America. No disputed territories to speak of and a lot of Caribean that people usually mistake for being independent countries. See below for the full list North American country list. All in all, I have only visited 5 of the 23 countries (see ✅ below) a number I definitely need to improve!

1. Canada ✅
2. United States ✅
3. Mexico ✅
4. Belize
5. Costa Rica
6. El Salvador
7. Guatemala
8. Honduras
9. Nicaragua
10. Panama
11. Antigua and Barbuda
12. Bahamas
13. Barbados
14. Cuba ✅
15. Dominica
16. Dominican Republic
17. Grenada
18. Haiti
19. Jamaica ✅
20. Saint Kitts and Nevis
21. Saint Lucia
22. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
23. Trinidad and Tobago