Map of Cook Islands
Cook Islands is a country in Oceania with its capital at Avarua, home to about 14,222 people across 240 km². The interactive map below plots 1 cities and towns and 1 mountain summits recorded for Cook Islands in YearMaps.
- Population
- 14,222
- Area
- 240 km²
- Capital
- Avarua
- Continent
- Oceania
Interactive Map of Cook Islands
Centred on Avarua at 21.1962° S, 159.7854° W. Use the layer panel to switch on rivers, dams, ports, peaks and historical borders.
About Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. While self-governing, the country is in free association with New Zealand. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately 236.7 square kilometres (91 sq mi). The Cook Islands Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers 1,960,027 square kilometres (756,771 sq mi) of ocean. The capital is Avarua, located on the island of Rarotonga.
Since the start of the 21st century, the country has conducted its own independent foreign and defence policy, and also its own customs regulations. Like most members of the Pacific Islands Forum, the country has no armed forces, but the Cook Islands Police Service owns a Guardian Class Patrol Boat, CIPPB Te Kukupa II, provided by Australia, for policing its waters. In recent decades, the Cook Islands has adopted an increasingly assertive and distinct foreign policy, and a Cook Islander, Henry Puna, served as Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum from 2021 to 2024. Most Cook Islanders have New Zealand citizenship, plus the status of Cook Islands nationals, which is not given to other New Zealand citizens. The Cook Islands have been an active member of the Pacific Community, formerly the South Pacific Commission, since 1980.
The Cook Islands' main population centres are on Rarotonga (10,863 in 2021), also the location of Rarotonga International Airport, the main international gateway to the country. The census of 2021 put the total population at 14,987. There is also a larger population of Cook Islanders in New Zealand and Australia: in the 2018 New Zealand census, 80,532 people said they were Cook Islanders, or of Cook Islands descent. The last Australian census recorded 28,000 Cook Islanders living in Australia, many with Australian citizenship. With over 168,000 visitors to the islands in 2018, tourism is the country's main industry and leading element of its economy, ahead of offshore banking, pearls, and marine and fruit exports.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia: Cook Islands (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Geography and Climate of Cook Islands
Polynesians from Tahiti were probably the first people to settle Rarotonga -- the largest of the Cook Islands -- around A.D. 900. Over time, Samoans and Tongans also settled in Rarotonga, and Rarotongans voyaged to the northern Cook Islands, settling Manihiki and Rakahanga. Pukapuka and Penrhyn in the northern Cook Islands were settled directly from Samoa. Prior to European contact, there was considerable travel and trade between inhabitants of the different islands and atolls, but they were not united in a single political entity. Spanish navigators were the first Europeans to spot the northern Cook Islands in 1595, followed by the first landing in 1606, but no further European contact occurred until the 1760s. In 1773, British explorer James COOK spotted Manuae in the southern Cook Islands, and Russian mapmakers named the islands after COOK in the 1820s. Fearing France would militarily occupy the islands as it did in Tahiti, Rarotongans asked the UK for protectorate status in the 1840s and 1860s, a request the UK ignored. In 1888, Queen MAKEA TAKAU of Rarotonga formally petitioned for protectorate status, to which the UK reluctantly agreed. In 1901, the UK placed Rarotonga and the rest of the islands in the New Zealand Colony, and in 1915, the Cook Islands Act organized the islands into one political entity. It remained a protectorate until 1965, when New Zealand granted the Cook Islands self-governing status. The Cook Islands has a great deal of local autonomy and is an independent member of international organizations, but it is in free association with New Zealand, which is responsible for its defense and foreign affairs. In September 2023, the US recognized the Cook Islands as a sovereign and independent state.
- Location
- Oceania, group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawaii and New Zealand.
- Climate
- Tropical oceanic; moderated by trade winds; a dry season from April to November and a more humid season from December to March.
- Terrain
- Low coral atolls in north; volcanic, hilly islands in south.
- Highest point
- Te Manga 652 m.
- Lowest point
- Pacific Ocean 0 m.
- Coastline
- 120 km.
- Land borders
- Total: 0 km.
- Natural resources
- Coconuts (copra)
- Land use
- Agricultural land: 7.9% (2023 est.); arable land: 2.1% (2023 est.); permanent crops: 5.8% (2023 est.); permanent pasture: 0% (2022 est.); forest: 65% (2023 est.); other: 27.1% (2023 est.)
- Natural hazards
- Tropical cyclones (November to March)
- Geographic note
- The northern Cook Islands are seven low-lying, sparsely populated, coral atolls; the southern Cook Islands, where most of the population lives, consist of eight elevated, fertile, volcanic isles, including the largest, Rarotonga, at 67 sq km.
- Languages
- English (official) 86.4%, Cook Islands Maori (Rarotongan) (official) 76.2%, other 8.3% (2011 est.)
- Religions
- Protestant 55% (Cook Islands Christian Church 43.1%, Seventh Day Adventist 8.3%, Assemblies of God 3.6%), Roman Catholic 16.7%, Church of Jesus Christ 3.9%, Jehovah's Witness 2.2%, Apostolic Church 2.1%, other 4.5%, none/unspecified 15.6% (2021 est.)
- Ethnic groups
- Cook Island Maori 77.4%, part Cook Island Maori 8.3%, Fijian 3.6%, New Zealand Maori/European 3.4%, Filipino 2.9%, other Pacific Islands 1.8%, other 2.6% (2021 est.)
- Economy
- High-income self-governing New Zealand territorial economy; tourism-based activity but diversifying; severely curtailed by COVID-19 pandemic; copra and tropical fruit exporter; Asian Development Bank aid recipient.
From the CIA World Factbook (public domain), archived edition of 2026-01-22. The Factbook is no longer updated, so figures reflect that edition.
Cook Islands in Depth
History
The Cook Islands were first settled around AD 1000 by Polynesian people who are thought to have migrated from Tahiti, an island 1,154 kilometres (717 mi; 623 nmi) to the northeast of the main island of Rarotonga.
The first European contact with the islands took place in 1595 when the Spanish navigator Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira sighted the island of Pukapuka, which he named San Bernardo (Saint Bernard). Pedro Fernandes de Queirós, a Portuguese captain at the service of the Spanish Crown, made the first European landing in the islands when he set foot on Rakahanga in 1606, calling the island Gente Hermosa (Beautiful People).
British explorer and naval officer Captain James Cook arrived in 1773 and again in 1777, giving the island of Manuae the name Hervey Island.
Geography
The Cook Islands are in the South Pacific Ocean, north-east of New Zealand, between American Samoa and French Polynesia. There are 15 major islands spread over 2,200,000 km2 (850,000 sq mi) of ocean, divided into two distinct groups: the Southern Cook Islands and the Northern Cook Islands of coral atolls.
The islands were formed by volcanic activity; the northern group is older and consists of six atolls, which are sunken volcanoes topped by coral growth. The climate is moderate to tropical. The Cook Islands consist of 15 islands and two reefs. From March to December, the Cook Islands are in the path of tropical cyclones, the most notable of which were the cyclones Martin and Percy.
Economy
The economy is strongly affected by geography. It is isolated from foreign markets, and has some inadequate infrastructure; it lacks major natural resources except for significant seabed critical minerals, has limited manufacturing and suffers moderately from natural disasters. Tourism provides the economic base that makes up approximately 67.5% of GDP. Additionally, the economy is supported by foreign aid, largely from New Zealand. China has also contributed foreign aid, which has resulted in, among other projects, the Police Headquarters building.
Rarotonga International Airport is the only airport that receives international flights. Eight airports on other islands provide local or charter services. Only Rarotonga and Aitutaki Airport have paved runways; the others have coral runways.
Demographics
In the Cook Islands, there is separation between the church and the state, and most of the population is Christian.
Various Protestant groups account for 62.8% of the believers, the most followed denomination being the Cook Islands Christian Church with 49.1%. Other Protestant Christian groups include Seventh-day Adventist 7.9%, Assemblies of God 3.7% and Apostolic Church 2.1%. The main non-Protestant group are Catholics, with 17% of the population. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints makes up 4.4%.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Cook Islands (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Cook Islands: Key Facts
| Currencies | New Zealand dollar, Cook Islands dollar |
|---|---|
| Official languages | English, Cook Islands Maori |
| Head of state | Charles III |
| Head of government | Mark Brown |
| Calling code | +682 |
| Internet domain | .ck |
| Highest point | Te Manga |
| Established | 4 August 1965 |
Facts from Wikidata Q26988 (CC0).
Visiting Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is an island country in free association with New Zealand, located in Polynesia, in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean. It is an archipelago of 15 islands spread over 2.2 million km2 of ocean.
With the same time zone as Hawaii, the islands are sometimes thought of as "Hawaii down under". Though smaller, it reminds some elderly visitors of Hawaii before statehood and without all the large tourist hotels and other development.
Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Cook Islands (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Largest Cities in Cook Islands
1 city recorded. Ranked by metropolitan population. A port city's harbour is written up on the page of its sea.
| # | Name | Population | Region | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Avarua | 5,445 | — | Admin-1 capital |
Highest Mountains in Cook Islands
1 mountain recorded. Ranked by summit elevation above sea level. A summit on a border is listed under both countries.
| # | Name | Elevation | Feet | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Te Manga | 652 m | 2,139 ft | Oceania |
Largest Islands of Cook Islands
7 islands recorded. Ranked by mapped area. An island divided between countries is listed under each, with the area of the whole island.
More Maps in Oceania
Cook Islands: Quick Answers
- What is the capital of Cook Islands?
- The capital of Cook Islands is Avarua.
- What is the population of Cook Islands?
- Cook Islands has a population of about 14,222, the #219 largest of 225 countries in YearMaps. Source: Wikidata.
- How big is Cook Islands?
- Cook Islands covers 240 km², ranking #214 by area, with about 59 people per square kilometre.
- Which continent is Cook Islands in?
- Cook Islands is in Oceania.
- What is the largest city in Cook Islands?
- Avarua is the largest city in Cook Islands, with a metropolitan population of about 5,445.
- What is the highest mountain in Cook Islands?
- The highest summit recorded for Cook Islands in YearMaps is Te Manga at 652 m (2,139 ft). Summits on a border are counted for both countries.