Map of Mexico with states and capitals

States of Mexico and their capitals

Mexico is a federal republic of 31 states and Mexico City, the capital, which became a federal entity of its own in 2016. These 32 units are shown on the map; Chihuahua, in the north, is the largest state by area.

Population from Wikidata (latest figure available for each state).

Blank and coloring maps of Mexico

Blank map of Mexico

Coloring map of Mexico

Geography of Mexico

Mexico covers 1,972,550 km² (761,606 sq mi). Its heart is the high Mexican Plateau, framed by two long mountain ranges, the Sierra Madre Occidental in the west and the Sierra Madre Oriental in the east. Across the south of the plateau runs the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, with snowcapped volcanoes such as Popocatépetl and Citlaltépetl (Pico de Orizaba), the highest point at 5,636 m (18,491 ft). Two large peninsulas extend from the mainland: Baja California in the northwest and the flat limestone Yucatán Peninsula in the southeast.

The north is dominated by the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts, while the south and the Yucatán are tropical, with rainforest in Chiapas. The Rio Grande, called the Río Bravo in Mexico, forms a long stretch of the border with the United States, and the Usumacinta separates part of Mexico from Guatemala. The Yucatán has almost no rivers on the surface; water flows underground and appears in sinkholes called cenotes. Lake Chapala, near Guadalajara, is the country's largest lake.

Fun facts

• Mexico City is built on the bed of a former lake, Lake Texcoco, and parts of the city are slowly sinking.
• The Chicxulub crater, linked to the extinction of the dinosaurs, lies buried beneath the Yucatán Peninsula.
• With 132,274,416 people (2024), Mexico has the largest population of any Spanish-speaking country.

Countries bordering Mexico

• Belize
• Guatemala
• United States