What is an ISO 3166-2 code?

ISO 3166-2 is the international standard for codes that identify principal administrative subdivisions of countries — states, provinces, regions, cantons, and similar. Each code starts with the ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code, a hyphen, then one to three letters or digits, for example US-CA for California.

How does ISO 3166-2 relate to ISO 3166-1?

ISO 3166-1 gives each country a two-letter code (US, GB, FR). ISO 3166-2 builds on it by appending a subdivision suffix after a hyphen. So GB is the United Kingdom and GB-SCT is Scotland. The country prefix is always the alpha-2 code.

Why do some codes use numbers and others use letters?

Each country chooses its own subdivision suffix scheme. Many use letter abbreviations (US-NY), while others use numeric codes derived from local administrative numbering (FR-75 for Paris, IT-RM for Rome). Both are valid within the standard.

What does the category field mean?

ISO 3166-2 labels each subdivision with its local administrative type — state, province, region, canton, emirate, district, and so on. The category reflects the country's own constitutional terminology rather than a single global word.

Can subdivision codes change?

Yes. ISO publishes newsletters and updates when countries reorganize their administrative divisions, rename regions, or change codes. Always check against the current ISO Online Browsing Platform for authoritative, up-to-date values.

ISO 3166-2 Country Subdivision Lookup

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ISO 3166-2 assigns a standardized code to each principal administrative subdivision of a country — a state, province, region, canton, or similar. The code is the country’s ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code, a hyphen, then a short local suffix, like US-CA (California) or GB-SCT (Scotland). This lookup lets you search across a curated set of subdivisions by country, name, or code.

How it works

Every ISO 3166-2 code has two parts joined by a hyphen. The prefix is the two-letter country code from ISO 3166-1 alpha-2. The suffix is one to three characters chosen by the country — usually a letter abbreviation of the subdivision name or a number from the local administrative numbering scheme.

The tool stores each subdivision with its country, full code, official name, and category (the local term: state, province, region, canton, emirate, etc.). Filtering matches the country code, the subdivision name, and the category, so you can search “California”, “US-CA”, or “state” and find the same entry.

Tips and examples

US states use postal-style letters: US-NY, US-TX, US-CA.
UK nations use three-letter codes: GB-ENG, GB-SCT, GB-WLS, GB-NIR.
France and Italy mix numbers and letters: FR-75 (Paris), IT-RM (Rome).
This is a curated subset for common reference. For the authoritative, complete list, consult the ISO Online Browsing Platform.
The country prefix is always the alpha-2 code — never the alpha-3 code.