Arizona(capital: Phoenix)The capital is Phoenix, which is also the most populous city. Arizona became the 48th state on February 14, 1912, the last of the contiguous states to join.
Colorado(capital: Denver)The capital is Denver, which is also the most populous city. Colorado became the 38th state on August 1, 1876.
Idaho(capital: Boise)The capital is Boise, which is also the most populous city. Idaho became the 43rd state on July 3, 1890. Hells Canyon, on the Snake River, is the deepest gorge in the country.
Montana(capital: Helena)The capital is Helena, sixth in population in the state. Billings is the biggest and the usual wrong guess. Montana became the 41st state on November 8, 1889.
Nevada(capital: Carson City)The capital is Carson City. It is sixth in population in the state. Las Vegas is the biggest and the usual wrong guess. Nevada became the 36th state: October 31, 1864.
New Mexico(capital: Santa Fe)The capital is Santa Fe. It is fourth in population in the state. Albuquerque is the biggest and the usual wrong guess. It became the 47th state: January 6, 1912.
Utah(capital: Salt Lake City)The capital is Salt Lake City, also the most populous city. Utah became the 45th state on January 4, 1896.
Wyoming(capital: Cheyenne)The capital is Cheyenne, which is also the most populous city. Wyoming became the 44th state on July 10, 1890.
Pacific 5
Alaska(capital: Juneau)The capital is Juneau. No road joins it to the state at large. The most populous city is Anchorage, the usual wrong guess. Alaska became the 49th state on January 3, 1959.
California(capital: Sacramento)The capital is Sacramento, sixth in population in the state. Los Angeles is the biggest and the usual wrong guess. California became the 31st state on September 9, 1850.
Hawaii(capital: Honolulu)The capital is Honolulu, on the island of Oahu. It is also the most populous city. Hawaii became the 50th state on August 21, 1959, the most recent to join.
Oregon(capital: Salem)The capital is Salem, on the Willamette River. Portland has the most people and is the usual wrong guess. Oregon became the 33rd state on February 14, 1859.
Washington(capital: Olympia)The capital is Olympia, at the south end of Puget Sound. Seattle has the most people and is the usual wrong guess. Washington became the 42nd state on November 11, 1889.
How this list was compiled: State list and the two divisions: U.S. Census Bureau, Census Regions and Divisions of the United States, https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/maps/reference/us_regdiv.pdf, checked 2026-09-19 (Region 4 West: Division 8 Mountain, eight states; Division 9 Pacific, five states). Capitals and 2020 census populations: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_capitals_in_the_United_States, checked 2026-09-19. Order and dates of admission: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_by_date_of_admission_to_the_Union, checked 2026-09-19. Most populous city of each state: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_cities_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_population, checked 2026-09-19. Naming, founding, setting and moves of each capital: the Wikipedia articles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juneau,_Alaska, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix,_Arizona, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacramento,_California, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denver, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honolulu, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boise,_Idaho, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helena,_Montana, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carson_City,_Nevada, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Fe,_New_Mexico, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salem,_Oregon, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_Lake_City, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympia,_Washington, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheyenne,_Wyoming, checked 2026-09-19. Borders, rivers, size and population ranks in the state hints: the Wikipedia articles on each of the thirteen states (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arizona, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaii, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idaho, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montana, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevada, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Mexico, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(state), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyoming), plus https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Salt_Lake, checked 2026-09-19. Where the list of capitals and a city article gave different years (Boise, Salt Lake City, Salem) the year is left out or the article's own dated event is used, and an in-state rank is given only where the list of capitals and the list of largest cities agree (Sacramento, Helena, Carson City, Santa Fe). The Santa Fe article gives two elevations (6,998 feet in its lead, 7,199 feet under Geography) and two founding years (1607 and 1610) and agrees only that the town became a capital in 1610, so the hint says a capital since 1610 and about 7,000 feet. The Olympia article gives 50 and 47 miles from Seattle, so the hint says about 50. Both read 2026-09-19. Hints and detail lines written for this site. Licence: own work
The drawing: Drawn for this site from U.S. Census Bureau 2023 cartographic boundary file cb_2023_us_state_5m (scale 1:5,000,000), https://www2.census.gov/geo/tiger/GENZ2023/shp/cb_2023_us_state_5m.zip, downloaded 2026-09-19. Surrounding land from Natural Earth 5.1.2, ne_10m_admin_0_countries_lakes (scale 1:10,000,000), https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvkelso/natural-earth-vector/v5.1.2/geojson/ne_10m_admin_0_countries_lakes.geojson, downloaded 2026-09-19. Albers equal-area conic projection, central meridian 113°W, standard parallels 34.3°N and 46.1°N. Alaska; Hawaii moved into insets. Outlines simplified; small islands are left out. Licence: public domain (work of the United States government, 17 U.S.C. 105): https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/data/tiger/tgrshp2023/TGRSHP2023_TechDoc_Ch1.pdf; public domain (Natural Earth terms of use: https://www.naturalearthdata.com/about/terms-of-use/)
How it works
This western states and capitals quiz covers 13 states, with Alaska and Hawaii in boxes. A state lights up, and you name it, then its capital. Take the 8 Mountain or 5 Pacific states alone, then print the map blank.
Read the full guide
Eight Mountain states, five Pacific states
The list is the Census Bureau's West region. Mountain has 8 states: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. Pacific has 5: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington. Alaska and Hawaii sit in dashed boxes at the lower left, with Alaska drawn at about a quarter of the scale of the other states.
Every question has two parts
Name the lit state, then its capital. One wrong answer loses the point. Mountain and Pacific, under Start from, cut the round to one division, and missed states return in Practise the ones you missed.
Six capitals are the state's biggest city: Phoenix, Denver, Honolulu, Boise, Salt Lake City and Cheyenne. Seattle is a trap.
Santa Fe, a capital since 1610, is the oldest state capital and, at about 7,000 feet, the highest.
No road reaches Juneau: visitors arrive by plane or boat. No state capital lies farther west or south than Honolulu.
Questions and answers
Where are the Southwest states and capitals?
Split across two pages. A Southwest unit usually means Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. Phoenix and Santa Fe are asked here, in the Mountain round. Austin and Oklahoma City are on the Southeast page, in its West South Central round.
Does the printable include Alaska and Hawaii?
Yes. Print blank numbers all 13 states, Alaska as 1 and Hawaii as 5, both inside their boxes, with a line each for the state and its capital. Print labelled pairs every state with its capital and serves as the key.
Which Western capitals are the smallest?
Helena and Juneau. At the 2020 census Helena had 32,091 people and Juneau 32,255, then Olympia 55,605 and Carson City 58,639. All four sit in the shadow of a bigger city: Billings, Anchorage, Seattle and Las Vegas.
Is West the same as Western here?
Yes. Both mean the Census Bureau's West, the same 13 states, so a west capitals quiz and a western one want the same answers. For the cities alone, the state capitals quiz names the state for you, across all 50.