Ecuador 🇪🇨
Ecuador is a country in South America with a population of 18,001,000. Its capital is Quito. The official currency is USD, and the main languages are Spanish.
Quick facts
- Capital: Quito
- Continent: South America
- Population: 18,001,000
- Area: 283,561 km²
- Density: 63.5 people per km²
- Currency: USD
- Languages: Spanish
- ISO code: EC
Where Ecuador sits
Ecuador 🇪🇨 is one of 12 countries in South America, with its capital at Quito. It covers 283,561 square kilometres — 73rd in the world — and is home to about 18,001,000 people, 67th globally.
The countries it shares a continent with include Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Peru and Venezuela. If you are learning geography region by region — which works far better than alphabetically, because memory for places is spatial — those are the ones to learn alongside it.
How Ecuador compares
Raw figures are hard to hold on their own, so it helps to anchor them. In population, Ecuador sits closest to Guatemala and Chad. In land area, its nearest counterparts are Burkina Faso and New Zealand.
At 63.5 people per square kilometre it is close to the world average of 59.4. It ranks higher by population than by area, so it is more crowded than its size alone suggests.
Spanish is an official language in 20 countries here, among them Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Colombia, and 15 others. The USD is shared with 6 other countries, including El Salvador, Marshall Islands and Micronesia, and 3 others.
To see Ecuador next to every other country, sort the country rankings by population, area or density; its currency and languages are listed alongside every other country's in world currencies and world languages.
How to remember Ecuador
Ecuador means 'Equator' in Spanish, and Quito is the capital city closest to the equator, which runs through the north of its metropolitan area. Quito is also very high, about 2,850 m up in the Andes. Colombia's flag has the same stripes, so look for Ecuador's coat of arms.
The flag of Ecuador: yellow, blue and red
🇪🇨 The flag is three horizontal stripes of yellow (twice as wide), blue and red, with the coat of arms in the centre. Yellow stands for sunshine, grain and mineral wealth, blue for the sky, sea and rivers, and red for the blood of patriots who fought for freedom and justice.
Region and neighbours
Ecuador is a country on the northwest coast of South America, on the Pacific Ocean, crossed by the equator and the Andes mountains. It shares land borders with 2 countries: Colombia and Peru.
- Colombia 🇨🇴 — capital Bogotá
- Peru 🇵🇪 — capital Lima
Three facts about Ecuador
- The Galápagos Islands, about 1,000 km out in the Pacific, belong to Ecuador.
- The top of Mount Chimborazo (6,268 m), Ecuador's highest mountain, is the point on Earth farthest from the centre of the planet.
- In 2008 Ecuador became the first country to recognise the rights of nature in its constitution.
Sources: Wikipedia: Ecuador, Wikipedia: Flag of Ecuador, Wikipedia: Quito, Wikipedia: Chimborazo, CIA World Factbook.
Quiz yourself on Ecuador
- South American capitals quiz — match Ecuador to Quito
- South American flags quiz — spot the Ecuador flag among its neighbours
Quizzes that include Ecuador
Three angles are worth covering for any country — where it is, what its flag looks like, and what its capital is. For Ecuador those are:
- South America map quiz — place it on a blank map
- South America flags quiz — identify its flag among its neighbours
- South America capitals quiz — match it to Quito
- Ecuador capital quiz — five quick questions starting with Ecuador
- Daily Map Challenge — five countries to find on a blank world map, the same five for everyone each day
Doing all three for one continent before moving on is far more efficient than learning flags globally, then capitals globally, then the map.
Read more about Ecuador
- Capital of Ecuador: Quito — the capital in detail, with size and density rankings
- All 12 countries of South America
Nearby countries
- Argentina 🇦🇷 — capital Buenos Aires
- Bolivia 🇧🇴 — capital Sucre
- Brazil 🇧🇷 — capital Brasília
- Chile 🇨🇱 — capital Santiago
- Colombia 🇨🇴 — capital Bogotá
- Guyana 🇬🇾 — capital Georgetown
- Paraguay 🇵🇾 — capital Asunción
- Peru 🇵🇪 — capital Lima
- Suriname 🇸🇷 — capital Paramaribo
- Uruguay 🇺🇾 — capital Montevideo
- Venezuela 🇻🇪 — capital Caracas
Frequently asked questions
What are the colours of the Ecuador flag?
The flag of Ecuador is three horizontal stripes of yellow (twice as wide), blue and red, with the coat of arms in the centre. Yellow stands for sunshine, grain and mineral wealth, blue for the sky, sea and rivers, and red for the blood of patriots who fought for freedom and justice.
Which countries border Ecuador?
Ecuador shares land borders with Colombia and Peru.
How can I remember the capital of Ecuador?
Ecuador means 'Equator' in Spanish, and Quito is the capital city closest to the equator, which runs through the north of its metropolitan area. Quito is also very high, about 2,850 m up in the Andes. Colombia's flag has the same stripes, so look for Ecuador's coat of arms.