How to play the US states map quiz
This quiz has two ways to play. In Find it on the map, the quiz names a state and you tap or click it on the map. If you pick the wrong one, your state turns red and the right one turns green, so you learn where it is. In Name the state, one state lights up in yellow and you choose its name from four options, by tapping or pressing 1 to 4. Press Enter or Next to move on.
- Choose Practice or Daily challenge. The daily gives everyone the same 10 states to find today.
- Pick a region (Northeast, Midwest, South or West, as the Census Bureau groups them) or play all 50.
- Use the zoom button for small states. It enlarges the Northeast, where Rhode Island, Delaware, Connecticut and New Jersey are hard to tap on a phone.
Alaska and Hawaii are drawn in boxes below the other states, as on most US maps, and are not to scale with the rest. Very small states get a circle when they are highlighted, so you can always see them.
Tips for learning the states
- Start with the edges. The coastal and border states frame the map, which makes the middle easier.
- Learn the corners of Four Corners: Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona meet at a single point.
- Group the square states. Wyoming and Colorado are both rectangles; Wyoming is the one to the north.
- For teachers: project the map and let students take turns at the board, or set the daily as a bell-ringer.
Questions
Does it work on a phone or tablet?
Yes. Tap a state to answer. For the small states in the Northeast, press Zoom in on the Northeast first to make them bigger.
Is Washington, D.C. in the quiz?
No. The District of Columbia is drawn on the map but is not a state, so the quiz never asks about it.
Can I use a keyboard?
In Name the state, press 1 to 4 to answer and Enter for the next question. Finding states on the map needs a mouse, touch screen or trackpad.
Is my score saved?
Best scores and the daily streak are saved in this browser only. Nothing is uploaded.