The hardest countries to find on a map

By Chris Silver · 24 August 2026

Every day, thousands of people try to find countries on a blank 3D globe in Borderline. No labels, no borders highlighted, just the world. Over 250,000 guesses later, here is what that experiment says: all 166 countries, ranked by how often players put their first tap inside the right borders.

The spread is enormous. Brazil and Russia are found by 98% of players. Timor-Leste, by 25%. Half the countries of West Africa sit below 40%. These are not trick questions. The game names the country and shows the whole planet. People simply do not know where these places are.

Try today's five countriesfree, no signup, ~2 minutes

The ten hardest

1. Timor-Leste 25%

   South-Eastern Asia · capital Dili. Players hover a median 9s before daring a tap.

2. Liberia 28%

   Western Africa · capital Monrovia. First guesses land an average of 637 km north-east of it.

3. Sierra Leone 31%

   Western Africa · capital Freetown. First guesses land an average of 866 km east of it.

4. Burkina Faso 31%

   Western Africa · capital Ouagadougou. Guesses scatter across a circle 1,989 km wide.

5. Senegal 32%

   Western Africa · capital Dakar. First guesses land an average of 446 km east of it.

6. Brunei 33%

   South-Eastern Asia · capital Bandar Seri Begawan. Players hover a median 10s before daring a tap.

7. Guinea 34%

   Western Africa · capital Conakry. The most common wrong answer is Sierra Leone.

8. Vanuatu 34%

   Melanesia · capital Port Vila. Players hover a median 10s before daring a tap.

9. Gabon 37%

   Middle Africa · capital Libreville. First guesses land an average of 437 km north-west of it.

10. Zambia 37%

    Eastern Africa · capital Lusaka. First guesses land an average of 732 km north-west of it.

The ten easiest

Brazil (98%), Russia (98%), Australia (96%), France (96%), Canada (95%), United States (94%), Mexico (92%), China (92%), India (92%), South Korea (90%). Big, famous, or both.

The full ranking

Every country with enough guesses to measure (minimum 30 first attempts each; most have hundreds).

Found by fewer than 40% (13 countries)

Country	Region	Find it first try
Timor-Leste	South-Eastern Asia	25%
Liberia	Western Africa	28%
Sierra Leone	Western Africa	31%
Burkina Faso	Western Africa	31%
Senegal	Western Africa	32%
Brunei	South-Eastern Asia	33%
Guinea	Western Africa	34%
Vanuatu	Melanesia	34%
Gabon	Middle Africa	37%
Zambia	Eastern Africa	37%
Gambia	Western Africa	37%
Mauritania	Western Africa	37%
Djibouti	Eastern Africa	38%

40–54%: coin-flip country (51 countries)

Country	Region	Find it first try
Ghana	Western Africa	40%
Cameroon	Middle Africa	41%
Costa Rica	Central America	41%
Guinea-Bissau	Western Africa	42%
Albania	Southeast Europe	43%
Mali	Western Africa	44%
Niger	Western Africa	44%
Uganda	Eastern Africa	44%
Bahamas	Caribbean	44%
Angola	Middle Africa	44%
Suriname	South America	44%
Turkmenistan	Central Asia	44%
Eritrea	Eastern Africa	45%
Malawi	Eastern Africa	45%
Guatemala	Central America	45%
Zimbabwe	Eastern Africa	46%
Kenya	Eastern Africa	46%
Slovenia	Central Europe	46%
Chad	Middle Africa	46%
Tanzania	Eastern Africa	46%
Solomon Islands	Melanesia	46%
Benin	Western Africa	47%
Guyana	South America	47%
Namibia	Southern Africa	47%
Mozambique	Eastern Africa	47%
Czechia	Central Europe	48%
Lebanon	Western Asia	49%
Slovakia	Central Europe	49%
Bulgaria	Southeast Europe	49%
Trinidad and Tobago	Caribbean	50%
Nigeria	Western Africa	51%
Honduras	Central America	51%
Hungary	Central Europe	52%
Moldova	Eastern Europe	52%
Croatia	Southeast Europe	52%
Serbia	Southeast Europe	52%
Ivory Coast	Western Africa	52%
North Macedonia	Southeast Europe	52%
Burundi	Eastern Africa	53%
Fiji	Melanesia	53%
Armenia	Western Asia	53%
Ethiopia	Eastern Africa	53%
Myanmar	South-Eastern Asia	53%
Cyprus	Southern Europe	53%
Azerbaijan	Western Asia	53%
Romania	Southeast Europe	54%
Jordan	Western Asia	54%
Tajikistan	Central Asia	54%
Montenegro	Southeast Europe	54%
Nicaragua	Central America	54%
United Arab Emirates	Western Asia	54%

55–69%: most people get there (49 countries)

Country	Region	Find it first try
Botswana	Southern Africa	55%
Eswatini	Southern Africa	55%
Togo	Western Africa	55%
Republic of the Congo	Middle Africa	55%
Uruguay	South America	56%
Kuwait	Western Asia	56%
Lesotho	Southern Africa	56%
Rwanda	Eastern Africa	57%
Libya	Northern Africa	57%
Syria	Western Asia	57%
El Salvador	Central America	57%
Thailand	South-Eastern Asia	58%
Dominican Republic	Caribbean	58%
Paraguay	South America	59%
Sudan	Northern Africa	59%
Belize	Central America	59%
Central African Republic	Middle Africa	59%
Estonia	Northern Europe	61%
Algeria	Northern Africa	61%
DR Congo	Middle Africa	61%
Bolivia	South America	61%
Philippines	South-Eastern Asia	61%
Kazakhstan	Central Asia	61%
Afghanistan	Southern Asia	61%
Equatorial Guinea	Middle Africa	61%
Latvia	Northern Europe	62%
Laos	South-Eastern Asia	62%
Lithuania	Northern Europe	62%
Uzbekistan	Central Asia	62%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Southeast Europe	62%
Qatar	Western Asia	63%
Georgia	Western Asia	63%
Switzerland	Western Europe	63%
Kyrgyzstan	Central Asia	63%
Yemen	Western Asia	64%
Bhutan	Southern Asia	64%
Belarus	Eastern Europe	65%
Peru	South America	65%
Colombia	South America	65%
Nepal	Southern Asia	66%
Haiti	Caribbean	66%
Ecuador	South America	66%
Oman	Western Asia	66%
South Sudan	Middle Africa	66%
Indonesia	South-Eastern Asia	67%
Iraq	Western Asia	68%
Somalia	Eastern Africa	69%
Austria	Central Europe	69%
Luxembourg	Western Europe	69%

70–84%: hard to miss (32 countries)

Country	Region	Find it first try
Jamaica	Caribbean	70%
Netherlands	Western Europe	70%
Bangladesh	Southern Asia	70%
Kosovo	Southeast Europe	71%
Malaysia	South-Eastern Asia	72%
Cuba	Caribbean	73%
Venezuela	South America	73%
Saudi Arabia	Western Asia	74%
New Zealand	Australia and New Zealand	74%
Japan	Eastern Asia	75%
Tunisia	Northern Africa	76%
Poland	Central Europe	76%
Cambodia	South-Eastern Asia	76%
Iran	Southern Asia	76%
Denmark	Northern Europe	76%
Madagascar	Eastern Africa	77%
Papua New Guinea	Melanesia	77%
Panama	Central America	78%
Belgium	Western Europe	78%
Morocco	Northern Africa	78%
Chile	South America	79%
Finland	Northern Europe	79%
Italy	Southern Europe	79%
Sri Lanka	Southern Asia	79%
Ukraine	Eastern Europe	80%
Israel	Western Asia	80%
Norway	Northern Europe	80%
Iceland	Northern Europe	81%
Argentina	South America	82%
Mongolia	Eastern Asia	83%
Portugal	Southern Europe	83%
Egypt	Northern Africa	84%

85% and up: unmissable (21 countries)

Country	Region	Find it first try
Sweden	Northern Europe	85%
Vietnam	South-Eastern Asia	85%
Greece	Southern Europe	85%
Türkiye	Western Asia	86%
Pakistan	Southern Asia	87%
Germany	Western Europe	88%
South Africa	Southern Africa	88%
Ireland	Northern Europe	89%
Spain	Southern Europe	89%
United Kingdom	Northern Europe	89%
North Korea	Eastern Asia	89%
South Korea	Eastern Asia	90%
India	Southern Asia	92%
China	Eastern Asia	92%
Mexico	North America	92%
United States	North America	94%
Canada	North America	95%
France	Western Europe	96%
Australia	Australia and New Zealand	96%
Russia	Eastern Europe	98%
Brazil	South America	98%

How this was measured

Borderline gives every player the same five countries each day and records where the first tap lands. A find means the first tap was inside the country's borders. Water taps within 50 km of the right coastline count as finds, because a fingertip slip into the sea is aim rather than ignorance. Data covers June to August 2026, 166 countries, over 250,000 guesses. Country outlines from Natural Earth.

Curious about a specific country? Start with the most mislocated: Where is…? If you would like your own map to stop having gaps, here is how to actually learn where every country is and how long that actually takes. There is also where the world's blind spots really are, what our data says about daily habits, and a comparison of the geography games, ours included.