U.S. state flags

Fifty states, and far too many of them a seal on a blue sheet. The ones that aren’t are some of the best flags anywhere.

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Many state flags grew out of the regimental colours carried in the Civil War and the Spanish–American War, which is why so many are the state seal on dark blue. Flag designers call them “seals on a bedsheet”, and since 2020 Mississippi, Utah and Minnesota have all replaced theirs with simpler designs.

Test yourself: U.S. State Flags →

The Northeast

Maine
The state arms on blue: a moose under a pine, a farmer and a sailor.
New Hampshire
The seal on blue, showing the frigate Raleigh built at Portsmouth in 1776.
Vermont
The state arms on blue, with a pine and a cow.
Massachusetts
An Algonquian man on a shield, on white.
Rhode Island
A gold anchor and the word “Hope” on white, ringed by thirteen stars.
Connecticut
Three grapevines on a white shield, on blue.
New York
Liberty and Justice holding the state arms, on blue.
New Jersey
The state arms on buff, a colour George Washington chose for New Jersey’s troops.
Pennsylvania
The arms held by two horses, on blue.
Delaware
A buff diamond on colonial blue, with the date it ratified the Constitution first: 7 December 1787.
Maryland
The arms of the Calvert and Crossland families, Maryland’s founding lords, quartered.

The South

Virginia
Virtue standing over a fallen tyrant, with “Sic semper tyrannis”.
West Virginia
The arms on white with a blue border, with a miner and a farmer.
North Carolina
Red and white bars, with a blue field holding two dates from the Revolution.
South Carolina
A white palmetto and crescent on blue, from a 1775 Revolutionary banner.
Georgia
Three stripes and the state arms in a canton ringed by thirteen stars.
Florida
A red saltire on white, with the state seal in the middle.
Alabama
A red saltire on white.
Mississippi
A white magnolia on blue, adopted by popular vote in 2020.
Tennessee
Three white stars for the state’s three grand divisions, in a blue circle on red.
Kentucky
Two men shaking hands over “United we stand, divided we fall”.
Arkansas
A white diamond on red, its border holding 25 stars: Arkansas was the 25th state.
Louisiana
A pelican feeding her young with her own blood, on blue.
Texas
The Lone Star: flown by the Republic of Texas from 1839.
Oklahoma
An Osage shield with a peace pipe and olive branch, on blue.

The Midwest

Ohio
The only state flag that isn’t a rectangle: a swallowtail burgee.
Michigan
The arms on blue, with an elk and a moose.
Indiana
A gold torch ringed by stars; the biggest star, above the flame, is Indiana.
Illinois
The seal on white, with the state’s name added in 1970.
Wisconsin
The arms on blue, with the state’s name and 1848, the year it joined.
Minnesota
Since 2024, a white North Star on a dark blue shape recalling the state’s outline.
Iowa
A blue, white and red tricolour with an eagle, echoing the French flag of the Louisiana Purchase.
Missouri
Red, white and blue stripes with the state seal in a ring of 24 stars.
North Dakota
An eagle on blue, based on the flag the state’s troops carried in the Philippines.
South Dakota
The seal on blue, ringed by a golden sun.
Nebraska
The seal in gold on blue.
Kansas
The seal on blue, with a sunflower and the name KANSAS.

The West

Montana
The seal on blue, with MONTANA written across the top.
Wyoming
A white bison branded with the state seal, in white and red borders.
Colorado
A red C around a gold disc, on blue and white stripes.
New Mexico
The Zia sun symbol in red on gold, the colours of Spain.
Arizona
A copper star, with thirteen red and gold rays for the original colonies.
Utah
Since 2024, a beehive on a hexagon in front of snowy mountains.
Nevada
A silver star and sagebrush, with “Battle Born”: Nevada joined during the Civil War.
Idaho
The only state seal designed by a woman, on blue.
Washington
The only green state flag, and the only one with a president’s portrait.
Oregon
The only state flag with a different design on the back: a beaver.
California
The Bear Flag, from the short-lived California Republic of 1846.
Alaska
The Big Dipper and the North Star on blue, designed by a 13-year-old in 1927.
Hawaii
The Union Jack and eight stripes, one for each main island, from the Kingdom of Hawaii.

The territories

Puerto Rico
Cuba’s flag with the colours swapped, designed by Puerto Rican exiles in New York in the 1890s.
On the globe →
U.S. Virgin Islands
A version of the U.S. coat of arms between the letters V and I.
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Guam
The island’s seal, a proa sailing canoe under a coconut palm, on blue.
On the globe →
American Samoa
A bald eagle holding a fly whisk and a war club, both Samoan symbols of authority.
On the globe →
Northern Mariana Islands
A white star over a latte stone, the pillar of ancient Chamorro houses.
On the globe →

On the globe

United States