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The highest capital cities ranked here use labelled elevations of official national capitals, including both of Bolivia's official capitals. Rank is by commonly cited elevation in metres above sea level for official national capitals of United Nations member states, with Bolivia entered twice because the roles are different: La Paz is the seat of government, commonly given as about 3,640 metres, while Guinness World Records gives 3,631 metres; Sucre is the constitutional, or legal, capital, given as 2,810 metres by Guinness and about 2,790 metres in standard compiled lists [1][2]. Elevations vary slightly with the reference point, such as a central plaza rather than an airport or a mean city figure, which is why those small differences are labelled. El Alto, whose airport Guinness gives as 4,080 metres, is a neighbouring city and is not the capital [2]. Lhasa is not a national capital and is not ranked.
Quito, the official capital of Ecuador, is commonly given as 2,850 metres and is the highest undisputed single official capital if a list refused to enter a seat of government separately from a constitutional capital [1]. This article keeps both Bolivian capitals and labels the roles. The list is a height ranking, not a quality-of-life ranking, and it records Sana'a as Yemen's official capital by elevation only.
Key Facts
Compiled national-capital elevation tables are used for the commonly cited figures, with the Guinness record used as a check on La Paz and Sucre [1][2]. Bogota is commonly given as 2,625 metres, Addis Ababa as 2,355, Thimphu as 2,334, Asmara as 2,325, Sana'a as 2,250, Mexico City as 2,240, and Nairobi as 1,795 [1]. Rank 1 is the outstanding official government-seat elevation, which is also the only city in the ten more than 3,000 metres above sea level.
Kabul, commonly given as 1,790 metres, sits just below Nairobi and is a near-eleventh, not a silent extra rank [1]. A widely circulated list that gave Tehran 1,830 metres is not followed here; standard compiled capital tables give Tehran about 1,400 metres, which would not place it in this ten [1]. The table is the official spine: role first, labelled metres second, and no airport elevation is smuggled in as a city figure.
Highest Capital Cities at a Glance
| Rank | Capital | Elevation (m) | Official role | 2026 note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | La Paz, Bolivia | About 3,640; Guinness 3,631 | Seat of government | Not the constitutional capital; El Alto is a separate city |
| 2 | Quito, Ecuador | About 2,850 | Official capital | Highest undisputed single official capital if Bolivia were entered only once |
| 3 | Sucre, Bolivia | Guinness 2,810; commonly about 2,790 | Constitutional capital | A second Bolivian official capital, not a second La Paz |
| 4 | Bogota, Colombia | About 2,625 | Official capital | Highest official capital in this ten after the Andean trio |
| 5 | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | About 2,355 | Official capital | Highest official African capital in this method |
| 6 | Thimphu, Bhutan | About 2,334 | Official capital | A Himalayan official capital, not a second Lhasa |
| 7 | Asmara, Eritrea | About 2,325 | Official capital | Second-highest official African capital in this method |
| 8 | Sana'a, Yemen | About 2,250 | Official capital | Ranked by elevation only |
| 9 | Mexico City, Mexico | About 2,240 | Official capital | A high plateau capital, not an Andean city |
| 10 | Nairobi, Kenya | About 1,795 | Official capital | Just above Kabul at about 1,790 metres |
1. La Paz, Bolivia
La Paz, the seat of government of Bolivia, is the highest capital-city entry in this ten, commonly given as about 3,640 metres above sea level, while Guinness World Records gives 3,631 metres, a difference of a few metres that follows from the reference point [1][2]. It is not the constitutional capital, which is Sucre, listed third. El Alto and its airport, given by Guinness as 4,080 metres, are not this city and are not ranked as a capital [2]. The figure is a city elevation, not a peak elevation in the Cordillera Real.
It is first as the outstanding official government-seat elevation, a labelled 3,600-metre-class fact, and the necessary starting point of a dual-capital method [1][2]. A later official city survey of a few metres will belong in a revision of the cell.
Compiled capital tables and the Guinness record are the sources [1][2].
2. Quito, Ecuador
Quito, the official capital of Ecuador, is commonly given as 2,850 metres above sea level, and it is the highest undisputed single official capital in this ten if a list entered Bolivia only once [1]. The city stands in the Andes, and the figure is a commonly cited city elevation rather than a volcano summit. Official Ecuadorian capital status is not in dispute in the way Bolivia's two capitals are. This article records the labelled metres.
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It is second as the outstanding official single-capital elevation, a labelled 2,850-metre figure, and a necessary counterpart to La Paz [1]. A later official reference-point revision will belong in a revision of the cell.
Standard compiled capital-elevation tables are the source [1].
3. Sucre, Bolivia
Sucre is the constitutional, or legal, capital of Bolivia, given as 2,810 metres by Guinness World Records and about 2,790 metres in standard compiled lists, a difference of about 20 metres that is labelled rather than hidden [1][2]. It is a second official Bolivian capital, not a suburb of La Paz, and it stands lower than Quito and much lower than the government seat. This article records both the role and the elevation. A list that omitted Sucre would hide the constitutional capital.
It is third as the outstanding official constitutional-capital elevation in Bolivia, a labelled 2,800-metre-class figure, and a necessary counterpart to La Paz rather than a duplicate of it [1][2]. A later official survey will belong in a revision of the cell.
Guinness and compiled capital tables are the sources [1][2].
4. Bogota, Colombia
Bogota, the official capital of Colombia, is commonly given as 2,625 metres above sea level, a high Andean plateau city and the highest official capital in this ten after the La Paz, Quito, and Sucre group [1]. The figure is a commonly cited city elevation. Official capital status is not split in the Bolivian way. This article records the labelled metres, not a climate ranking.
It is fourth as the outstanding official Colombian capital elevation, a labelled 2,625-metre figure, and a necessary northern-Andean counterpart to Quito [1]. A later official reference-point revision will belong in a revision of the cell.
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Standard compiled capital-elevation tables are the source [1].
5. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Addis Ababa, the official capital of Ethiopia, is commonly given as 2,355 metres above sea level, and it is the highest official African capital in this method [1]. The figure is a commonly cited city elevation on the Ethiopian plateau. It stands just above Thimphu and well above Nairobi. This article records the labelled metres.
It is fifth as the outstanding official African capital elevation, a labelled 2,355-metre figure, and a necessary counterpart to the Andean cities above [1]. A later official survey will belong in a revision of the cell.
Standard compiled capital-elevation tables are the source [1].
6. Thimphu, Bhutan
Thimphu, the official capital of Bhutan, is commonly given as 2,334 metres above sea level, a Himalayan official capital and not a stand-in for Lhasa, which is not a national capital and is not ranked [1]. The figure is a commonly cited city elevation. It stands just below Addis Ababa and just above Asmara, a gap of only a few metres that could change with a later official reference point. This article records the labelled metres.
It is sixth as the outstanding official Himalayan national-capital elevation, a labelled 2,334-metre figure, and a necessary Asian counterpart to the African plateau cities [1]. A later official survey of a few metres might swap it with a neighbour in the table.
Standard compiled capital-elevation tables are the source [1].
7. Asmara, Eritrea
Asmara, the official capital of Eritrea, is commonly given as 2,325 metres above sea level, the second-highest official African capital in this method after Addis Ababa [1]. The figure is a commonly cited city elevation on the Eritrean highland. The gap to Thimphu is only about nine metres and is labelled as a close neighbour, not as a vast margin. This article records the labelled metres.
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It is seventh as the outstanding official Eritrean capital elevation, a labelled 2,325-metre figure, and a necessary highland counterpart to Addis Ababa [1]. A later official survey of a few metres might change the order with Thimphu.
Standard compiled capital-elevation tables are the source [1].
8. Sana'a, Yemen
Sana'a, the official capital of Yemen, is commonly given as 2,250 metres above sea level, and it is ranked here by that elevation only [1]. The figure is a commonly cited city elevation on a highland plain. This article does not treat the city as a political argument. Official capital status for the purpose of this height list follows the commonly cited national-capital tables used for the rest of the ten.
It is eighth as the outstanding official Arabian highland capital elevation, a labelled 2,250-metre figure, and a necessary counterpart to the East African highland cities [1]. A later official survey will belong in a revision of the cell.
Standard compiled capital-elevation tables are the source [1].
9. Mexico City, Mexico
Mexico City, the official capital of Mexico, is commonly given as 2,240 metres above sea level, a high plateau capital in the Valley of Mexico rather than an Andean city [1]. The figure is a commonly cited city elevation. Later local subsidence is a documented urban fact and is not used here to invent a new official capital height. This article records the labelled metres.
It is ninth as the outstanding official North American capital elevation in this ten, a labelled 2,240-metre figure, and a necessary counterpart to the South American Andean capitals [1]. A later official reference-point revision will belong in a revision of the cell.
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Standard compiled capital-elevation tables are the source [1].
10. Nairobi, Kenya
Nairobi, the official capital of Kenya, is commonly given as 1,795 metres above sea level, and it closes this ten just above Kabul, commonly given as 1,790 metres [1]. The five-metre gap is smaller than ordinary reference-point variation, so Kabul is recorded as a near-tie rather than as a city that missed the list by a mountain. This article records the labelled metres. Windhoek, Maseru, and other highland capitals sit lower still in the same tables.
It is tenth as the outstanding official East African mid-1,700-metre capital, a labelled 1,795-metre figure, and a necessary counterpart to Addis Ababa rather than a second Ethiopian entry [1]. A later official survey of a few metres might change the order with Kabul.
Standard compiled capital-elevation tables are the source [1].
Conclusion
A 2026 highest-capitals list has to label La Paz as Bolivia's seat of government at about 3,640 metres, or 3,631 metres in the Guinness record, and Sucre as the constitutional capital at 2,810 or about 2,790 metres, and it has to keep Quito at about 2,850 metres as the highest undisputed single official capital [1][2]. Bogota, Addis Ababa, Thimphu, Asmara, Sana'a, Mexico City, and Nairobi complete a ten in which El Alto is not a capital, Lhasa is not a national capital, and a stray 1,830-metre figure for Tehran is not used [1]. The useful habit is a labelled role, a labelled reference-point range, and a refusal to treat an airport height as a city height.
A later official city survey of a few metres will belong in a revision of a table cell; it will not change the method. Those labelled elevations are the spine of the list, and they will still be the spine after a later gazetteer has updated a central-plaza height in a later year.
- ^ [1] Standard compiled tables of national capital elevations, including La Paz about 3,640 metres as government seat, Quito 2,850, Sucre about 2,790, Bogota 2,625, Addis Ababa 2,355, Thimphu 2,334, Asmara 2,325, Sana'a 2,250, Mexico City 2,240, and Nairobi 1,795. List of capital cities by elevation
- ^ [2] Guinness World Records, highest capital: La Paz, administrative and de facto capital of Bolivia, 3,631 metres; El Alto airport 4,080 metres; Sucre, legal capital, 2,810 metres. Guinness World Records
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