The European Union has 27 members, and none has joined since 2013
The European Union is a union of 27 sovereign states. A country joins by the route set out in Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union. The union began with six founders in 1957 and has enlarged seven times, most recently in 2013. One member has left, in 2020, which is why the union is 27 rather than 28. The list may grow again: several countries are negotiating to join, but none had joined by 28 September 2026.
Name them all first. Then sort them by the enlargement in which each joined.
EU membership does not bring the euro with it
No. Joining the EU and adopting the euro are separate steps, taken at different times. One of the members that joined in 2007 adopted the euro only on 1 January 2026, nineteen years later, and six members still use their own currencies. When a question asks about EU members, count all 27. When it asks which countries use the euro, that is a different list with its own module.
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Can you name every member of the European Union?
Six countries founded it in 1957. Denmark and Ireland joined in 1973, Greece in 1981, Spain and Portugal in 1986, and Austria, Finland and Sweden in 1995. Ten joined on 1 May 2004, Bulgaria and Romania in 2007, and Croatia in 2013. The United Kingdom left on 31 January 2020.
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Can you name the six countries that signed the Treaties of Rome in 1957?
The original members, who signed the Treaty of Rome in 1957 after first pooling their coal and steel in 1951.
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Can you name the two countries that joined in 1973 and are still members?
The first widening of the Community. Denmark and Ireland joined in 1973.
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Can you name the three southern countries that joined in the 1980s?
Three southern states that joined once they had become democracies: Greece in 1981, then Spain and Portugal in 1986.
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Can you name the three countries that joined together in 1995?
Three states that joined together on 1 January 1995, after the end of the Cold War.
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Can you name the ten countries that joined on 1 May 2004?
Ten states that joined on 1 May 2004: eight formerly communist, plus the island states of Cyprus and Malta.
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Can you name the three countries that joined between 2007 and 2013?
The three newest members: Bulgaria and Romania on 1 January 2007, then Croatia on 1 July 2013.