Countries with flags that look alike
A national flag plays a big role in a country's identity, but there are a number of nations that share very similar flags. Some of these do so because they draw inspiration from the same place, while others are simply coincidental.
In this gallery, we look at the countries with similar flags. Click on to know the differences.
Indonesia and Monaco
The two countries are located on two different continents, yet share almost identical flags. Both flags go back a long way: the Monaco one (right) to the heraldic colors in their coat of arms, and the Indonesian one to the Majapahit empire.
Luxembourg and Netherlands
The two European nations share a similar red, white, and blue flag, but there is no historical relationship between the two. The one from Luxembourg (left) has a lighter shade of blue.
Chad and Romania
The Central African nation of Chad (left) shares a similar flag with the European country of Romania. Romania's flag was first hoisted in 1861, whereas the one from Chad marked the country's independence in 1959.
Senegal and Mali
These two African countries have similar flags with green, yellow, and red stripes. The one from Senegal (left) has a distinctive green star in the middle.
Ireland and Ivory Coast
The flags of Ireland and Côte d’Ivoire are very similar. The difference is that the colors are inverted.
Ecuador
The flag of Ecuador also shares a similar tricolor design, but it differentiates itself from the others with the larger yellow stripe and distinctive coat of arms.
Russia
The last few flags might also remind you of the Russian flag, which shares the same colors with several other nations and has the same orientation as Slovakia and Slovenia.
South Sudan and Kenya
Both flags of these African nations have black, white, red, and green stripes, which represent Pan-Africanism. The main difference between the two is that the one from South Sudan has a star, and the one from Kenya has a shield.
Liechtenstein and Haiti
These flags represent two small nations, though one is in Europe and the other in the Caribbean. Liechtenstein (left) didn't realize the resemblance up until the 1936 Summer Olympics, which prompted the country to add the crown to the flag, a change approved the following year.
Bolivia and Ghana
These two nations share a very similar flag: a horizontal tricolor of red, yellow, and green. The flag of Ghana (right) has a distinctive star.
Nicaragua and Argentina
There are four flags with horizontal blue and white stripes, all of them on the American continent. Two of them have a lighter shade of blue: Nicaragua (left) and Argentina.
Iraq and Egypt
Both the Iraqi (left) and the Egyptian flag feature a horizontal tricolour of red, white, and black, which are the pan-Arab colors.
Sudan
Another flag that features the pan-Arab colors is the one from the African nation of Sudan.
Liberia and the United States of America
Both the Liberian (left) and the American flag feature red and white stripes, but they differ in terms of quantity and meaning. The stripes on the flag of Liberia are a reference to the signatories of the Liberian Declaration of Independence, whereas the ones on the US flag represent the original 13 colonies.
