Flags that look alike
21 groups of flags that people mix up most, side by side, with the detail that gives each one away.
Chad, Romania, Andorra and Moldova
How to tell them apart
Chad and Romania are the same three vertical stripes of blue, yellow and red with nothing on them; Chad’s blue is a darker indigo, Romania’s a brighter cobalt. Andorra and Moldova add a coat of arms to the yellow stripe: Moldova’s is a golden eagle holding a cross in its beak, Andorra’s a four-part shield above the motto Virtus Unita Fortior.
Indonesia, Monaco and Poland
How to tell them apart
Indonesia and Monaco are both red over white and differ only in shape: Indonesia’s flag is longer (2:3), Monaco’s squarer (4:5). Poland is the other way up, white over red.
Australia and New Zealand
How to tell them apart
Both are dark blue with the Union Jack in the corner and the Southern Cross on the right. Australia’s stars are white, its cross has five of them, and a large seven-pointed star sits under the Union Jack. New Zealand has only four stars, red with white borders.
Ireland and Côte d’Ivoire
How to tell them apart
The same green, white and orange stripes in opposite order. Read from the flagpole: Ireland starts with green, Côte d’Ivoire with orange. Ireland’s flag is also longer (1:2 against 2:3).
Italy and Mexico
How to tell them apart
Both are green, white and red from the flagpole. Mexico has its coat of arms in the centre, an eagle on a cactus eating a snake, and its flag is longer and darker green. Italy’s is plain.
Netherlands and Luxembourg
How to tell them apart
Both are red, white and blue from top to bottom. The Netherlands uses a dark blue; Luxembourg’s blue is a light sky blue, and its flag is longer.
Mali, Senegal, Guinea and Cameroon
How to tell them apart
Mali is plain green, yellow and red from the flagpole. Senegal adds a green star in the yellow stripe. Cameroon swaps the order to green, red and yellow, with a yellow star in the red middle. Guinea runs the other way, red, yellow and green, with no star.
Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela
How to tell them apart
Colombia and Ecuador are yellow, blue and red with the yellow taking the top half; Ecuador adds its coat of arms, a condor above a mountain, in the centre. Venezuela’s three stripes are equal, with an arc of eight white stars in the blue.
El Salvador and Nicaragua
How to tell them apart
Both are blue, white and blue with an emblem in the centre showing a triangle of five volcanoes. El Salvador’s triangle is wrapped in a green laurel wreath; Nicaragua’s sits inside a gold ring of lettering.
Iraq, Egypt and Yemen
How to tell them apart
All three are red, white and black. Yemen’s white stripe is empty, Egypt’s holds a golden eagle, and Iraq’s carries “Allahu Akbar” in green Arabic script.
Norway and Iceland
How to tell them apart
Both have a Nordic cross with a white border. Norway is a red flag with a blue cross; Iceland reverses it, a blue flag with a red cross.
Slovenia, Slovakia, Russia and Serbia
How to tell them apart
Slovenia, Slovakia and Russia are white, blue and red from the top. Russia’s is plain. Slovakia’s shield is large and centred towards the flagpole, a white double cross on red above blue hills. Slovenia’s is small and in the top corner, a white mountain under three gold stars. Serbia is upside down by comparison, red, blue and white, with a double-headed eagle.
Qatar and Bahrain
How to tell them apart
Both have a white band at the flagpole with a zigzag edge. Qatar is maroon with nine points and a very long flag; Bahrain is a brighter red with five points.
Liechtenstein and Haiti
How to tell them apart
Both are blue over red. Liechtenstein has a gold crown in the top corner; Haiti has its coat of arms, a palm tree among cannons, on a white panel in the centre.
Austria and Latvia
How to tell them apart
Both are red, white and red. Austria’s stripes are equal and a bright red. Latvia’s red is a dark carmine and its white stripe is half the width of the others.
Belgium and Germany
How to tell them apart
The same black, yellow and red. Belgium’s stripes run up and down and its flag is almost square; Germany’s run across, with black at the top.
Japan, Bangladesh and Palau
How to tell them apart
Each is a disc on a plain field. Japan’s is red on white. Bangladesh’s is red on dark green, and Palau’s is yellow on light blue; both of those sit slightly towards the flagpole.
United States, Malaysia and Liberia
How to tell them apart
Red and white stripes with a blue corner. The United States has 13 stripes and 50 stars. Malaysia has 14 stripes and a yellow crescent with a yellow star. Liberia has 11 stripes and one large white star.
Niger and India
How to tell them apart
Both are orange, white and green with a disc in the centre. India’s disc is a navy blue wheel with 24 spokes; Niger’s is a plain orange circle, and its flag is almost square.
Ghana and Bolivia
How to tell them apart
Both are red, yellow and green from the top. Ghana has a black star in the yellow stripe. Bolivia’s state flag has its coat of arms there instead, and its civil flag has no emblem at all.
Argentina and Uruguay
How to tell them apart
Both are light blue and white with a golden Sun of May. Argentina has three stripes with the sun in the middle; Uruguay has nine stripes with the sun in the top corner by the flagpole.