States and Capitals of India: A Complete List for Students 

Quick answer: India has 28 states and 8 union territories, together making up 36 capitals. The most recent change was in 2019, when Jammu and Kashmir became two union territories, and the newest update came in 2026, when Amaravati was locked in by law as Andhra Pradesh's permanent capital.

India isn't just one country. It functions more like a federation of nations, each state with its own dominant language, cuisine, and identity, all held together under a single constitution. Getting the states, capitals, and how they came to be right is one of the first real steps into understanding Indian geography.

This guide gives you the full, updated 2026 list of states and capitals, the history of how the map got this way, a few dual-capital states almost nobody mentions, smart memory tricks, a 25-question quiz, and a stack of facts that go beyond what's in the textbook.

How Many States Are There in India?

India has 28 states and 8 union territories in 2026, adding up to 36 capitals in total. This is the current, correct count of total states in India, and it hasn't changed since 2019, when Jammu and Kashmir was reorganized into two union territories.

How India's States and Capitals Were Formed

India's current map of 28 states and 8 union territories took shape through a series of boundary reorganizations, starting in 1956 and continuing as recently as 2026. When India became independent in 1947, its internal borders were a leftover patchwork of British provinces and princely states, nothing like the map we use today. That changed in 1956, when the States Reorganisation Commission redrew India's internal boundaries largely along linguistic lines, on the idea that people who share a language govern themselves more effectively together.

The map has kept evolving since then:

• 2000: Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Uttarakhand were carved out of Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh.
• 2014: Telangana split from Andhra Pradesh, becoming India's newest state at the time.
• 2019: Jammu and Kashmir was reorganized into two union territories, Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, bringing the state count back to 28.
• 2026: Amaravati was formally locked in by law as Andhra Pradesh's sole, permanent capital, closing a decade-long question mark (more on this below).

Knowing this history matters for more than trivia: it explains why some older lists, textbooks, and even other websites are already out of date.

The 28 States of India and Their Capitals

Key facts about the states and capitals of India

India has 28 states, each with its own capital city and dominant regional language. The full list, arranged alphabetically, is below.

Amaravati is now Andhra Pradesh's sole and permanent capital by law. Parliament passed the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Act, 2026 in April 2026, with retrospective effect from June 2, 2024, formally ending the earlier "three capitals" plan (which had proposed splitting duties across Amaravati, Visakhapatnam, and Kurnool). A surprising amount of study material, including several other GK websites, still shows the old three-capitals version, so if you spot that elsewhere, it's outdated.

The 8 Union Territories of India and Their Capitals

India has 8 union territories, each administered directly by the central government rather than by its own elected state government. Three of the eight, however, do have their own elected legislature, giving them a partial mix of both systems.

Good to know: Port Blair, capital of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, was officially renamed Sri Vijaya Puram, a change many older lists and textbooks haven't caught up to yet.

States and Union Territories With More Than One Capital

Three states and union territories in India officially run on more than one capital: Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Maharashtra. Almost every guide mentions Jammu and Kashmir's summer/winter split. Far fewer mention that it's not the only one:

Three separate states running dual-capital systems for three different historical reasons is a genuinely underused fact in most GK content, and a good one to have in your back pocket for quizzes.

State vs. Union Territory: What's the Difference?

A state has its own elected government led by a Chief Minister, while a union territory is administered directly by the central government through a Lieutenant Governor or Administrator. The table below breaks down the key differences.

Not Every State Has Just One Official Language

Six Indian states officially recognize more than one language: Sikkim, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Jharkhand, Telangana, and Uttarakhand. The table above lists each state's main language, but this multi-language status is a common source of confusion in GK quizzes.

Trick Question: Is the Capital Always a State's Biggest City?

No, a state's capital isn't always its biggest city. Five states have a capital that's smaller than their actual largest city, which catches a lot of students off guard in quizzes and exams:

For most other states, including Maharashtra (Mumbai), Karnataka (Bengaluru), and Tamil Nadu (Chennai), the capital and the biggest city are the same place. Knowing the exceptions is an easy way to pick up extra marks.

Largest, Smallest, and Record-Holding States

Rajasthan is India's largest state and Goa its smallest, while Uttar Pradesh has the largest population and Sikkim the smallest. India's states and union territories span a huge range of sizes and populations, from a desert state bigger than several European countries to an island territory you could cross on foot in an afternoon. The records worth remembering:

A Few Things That Make Each State Distinct

Each major Indian state has a defining feature that goes well beyond its name and capital, from Rajasthan's desert forts to Kerala's backwaters. A list of names and capitals only tells half the story:

Rajasthan: Jaipur. India's largest state by area, stretching across the Thar Desert and dotted with centuries-old Rajput hill forts. Jaipur itself earned the nickname "Pink City" for the rose-washed buildings of its old town.

Kerala: Thiruvananthapuram. India's most literate state, shaped by its coastal backwater network, a centuries-old Ayurvedic medicine tradition, and a spice trade that once drew merchants from across the world.

Karnataka: Bengaluru. Often called India's tech capital, thanks to Bengaluru's concentration of IT firms and startups, while the state's Hampi ruins carry UNESCO World Heritage status from a very different era of history.

Maharashtra: Mumbai. India's commercial and film-industry center, home to Bollywood and the Bombay Stock Exchange, and, as covered above, one of only three states running a second, seasonal capital.

Assam: Dispur. Grows more tea than almost anywhere else on Earth, and its Kaziranga National Park protects rich wildlife, including the endangered one-horned rhinoceros.

Himachal Pradesh: Shimla. A former summer capital of British India, now known for its apple orchards, Buddhist monasteries, and trekking routes through the western Himalayas. As covered above, it's also one of only three states running a second, seasonal capital.

Punjab: Chandigarh. Frequently called India's breadbasket for its outsized wheat, rice, and vegetable production since the Green Revolution. Its shared capital, Chandigarh, remains one of Asia's rare fully planned cities, laid out by architect Le Corbusier.

Bihar: Patna. Home to Nalanda, one of the world's earliest universities, and Bodh Gaya, the site associated with the Buddha's enlightenment, giving the state a claim to being one of the oldest centers of learning anywhere.

Goa: Panaji. The smallest state by area, yet one of the most visited internationally. Centuries under Portuguese rule left a visible mark on its architecture, food, and unhurried pace of life.

Smart Ways to Remember States and Capitals

The fastest way to memorize all 36 state-capital pairs is to break them into smaller groups using direction, sound associations, and regular practice, rather than trying to learn the full list at once. These five approaches work well:

• Learn by direction. Split India into North, South, East, West, and Northeast, and tackle one region a day. The Northeast's "Seven Sisters" (Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Tripura) are best learned together as a group (Sikkim is sometimes called their "Brother" state).
• Match the first letter. Some pairs share a sound, which makes them the easiest wins: Andhra Pradesh–Amaravati, Gujarat–Gandhinagar, Maharashtra–Mumbai.
• Build an association for tricky pairs. For Gujarat–Gandhinagar, remember that the capital is literally named after Gandhi. For Kerala, just remember Thiruvananthapuram as "the longest one," that alone makes it stick.
• Draw it out. Sketch a blank outline of India and label states and capitals from memory, a few at a time. Physically placing names on a map engages a different kind of recall than reading a list does, and most students notice a real difference within a week or two.
• Quiz each other. Take turns calling out a state while the other person answers with its capital, then swap roles. It turns a solo chore into something closer to a game, and a quick round with a sibling or friend often sticks better than studying alone.

Why This Topic Matters for Competitive Exams

This isn't only classroom material, infact it is a General Knowledge section in Railways, Bank PO, NDA, SSC CGL/CHSL, UPSC, and most state government exams that pull questions from this exact topic year after year. Common formats include "Which is the capital of [state]?", "Which states share [city] as a capital?", and "Which states were formed after 2000?"

A few specific points cause repeat mistakes, so they're worth double-checking before any exam: mixing up Chandigarh's status as a union territory that also happens to be a state capital, forgetting which of the three dual-capital states (J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra) uses which city for what, and confusing Andhra Pradesh's capital with Telangana's now that Hyderabad belongs solely to the latter.

School students typically first meet this material in Class 5 Social Science, with more depth added through the middle grades; NCERT's Geography textbooks remain the standard reference for exam prep at that level.

Quick Quiz: Test Yourself

This 25-question quiz covers state capitals, union territories, and a bonus round of lesser-known facts from this guide. Try all 25 on your own first, then check your answers at the end. Play it with a friend and see who scores higher!

Part 1: Capitals of States

1. What is the capital of Maharashtra?
2. What is the capital of Kerala?
3. What is the capital of Rajasthan?
4. What is the capital of Gujarat?
5. What is the capital of Karnataka?
6. What is the capital of Tamil Nadu?
7. What is the capital of West Bengal?
8. What is the capital of Uttar Pradesh?
9. What is the capital of Bihar?
10. What is the capital of Telangana?
11. What is the capital of Madhya Pradesh?
12. What is the capital of Assam?
13. What is the capital of Odisha?

Part 2: Union Territories and Their Capitals

1. What is the capital of India?
2. What is the capital of Ladakh?
3. What is the capital of Puducherry?
4. What are the two capitals of Jammu and Kashmir?
5. What is the capital of Lakshadweep?

Part 3: Bonus Round: Beyond the Basics

1. Which union territory capital was recently renamed, and what is its new name?
2. Besides J&K, name one other state with a summer and winter capital.
3. Which state's capital isn't its largest city, Indore or Bhopal?
4. Which city is Maharashtra's "second capital," hosting the winter legislative session?
5. Which state capital's name is the longest of any in India?
6. Which two states share Telugu as an official language?
7. Which city is famous worldwide for its biryani?

Answers

1. Mumbai 2. Thiruvananthapuram 3. Jaipur 4. Gandhinagar 5. Bengaluru 6. Chennai 7. Kolkata 8. Lucknow 9. Patna 10. Hyderabad 11. Bhopal 12. Dispur 13. Bhubaneswar 14. New Delhi 15. Leh 16. Puducherry 17. Srinagar and Jammu 18. Kavaratti 19. Port Blair → Sri Vijaya Puram 20. Himachal Pradesh (Shimla/Dharamshala) or Maharashtra (Mumbai/Nagpur) 21. Bhopal is the capital; Indore is the largest city 22. Nagpur 23. Thiruvananthapuram 24. Andhra Pradesh and Telangana 25. Hyderabad

How did you do? 20 or more correct is excellent! If you missed a few, revisit the tricks above and try again tomorrow. A little practice daily beats one long cram session.

Fascinating Facts About Indian States and Capitals

India's states and capitals hold a handful of lesser-known details that go well beyond the standard list, from a capital that isn't a full territory to one with the longest name in the country. Here are the ones worth knowing:

• New Delhi is a district, not a full territory of its own. It's the seat of the national government, but administratively it's just one part of the larger National Capital Territory of Delhi, the union territory that surrounds it.
• Rajasthan is bigger than several countries combined. At 342,239 sq km, it's larger than Germany, yet holds only a small share of India's population, since much of it is desert.
• Goa isn't actually India's smallest administrative unit, just its smallest state. Union territories like Lakshadweep and Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu cover even less ground.
• Uttar Pradesh alone outpopulates most nations. With around 243 million residents in 2026, its population sits close to Nigeria's, currently the sixth-largest country on Earth by population.
• Thiruvananthapuram is the longest state capital name in India, at 17 letters. Loosely translated, "Thiru-Ananta-puram" means "city of the sacred Ananta," honoring the serpent deity of the local Padmanabhaswamy Temple.
• Chandigarh isn't part of either state it governs. When Punjab was reorganized in 1966, both Punjab and Haryana wanted the city as their capital, so it was carved out as a separate union territory instead, an arrangement that still stands today.
• Andhra Pradesh and Telangana both speak Telugu as their official language, a reminder that Telangana was carved out of Andhra Pradesh rather than being a historically distinct linguistic region.

Conclusion

You now know all 28 states, 8 union territories, and 36 capitals of India, along with the history, exceptions, and quirks most lists leave out. Save this page, practice a little each day, and revisit the quiz whenever you need a refresher.

This is exactly the kind of learning we care about at Sunbeam World School: simple, clear, and genuinely engaging. We're an online school for children from nursery through grade 12, with live classes, caring teachers, and a pace built around each child. If you'd like your child to learn this way every day, come explore Sunbeam World School.