United Nations: member states, headquarters and organs explained (2026)
The United Nations counts 193 member states in 2026 and is headquartered in New York City on an 18-acre international territory along the East River; this guide covers its founding in 1945, its six principal organs and the five permanent Security Council members.
The context
Why the United Nations is back in the spotlight
Searches for “united nations headquarters” (about 74,000 a month in English) and “un member states” rise every time the General Assembly meets, a Security Council vote makes headlines or a new conflict tests the institution. People want a clear, factual answer to basic questions: what the UN is, how many countries belong to it, and why its headquarters sits on international territory in the middle of Manhattan.
The United Nations was founded in 1945, in the aftermath of World War II, to replace the failed League of Nations. Its Charter was signed in San Francisco on 26 June 1945 by 50 countries (Poland became the 51st founding member shortly after) and took effect on 24 October 1945. Today the organization counts 193 member states, from the United States and China to Tuvalu and Nauru, plus two permanent observer states: the Holy See and the State of Palestine. For the full picture of how that fits into the world’s countries, see our list of all countries in the world.
The six principal organs
The UN Charter establishes six principal organs, each with a distinct role:
| Organ | Seat | Role |
|---|---|---|
| General Assembly | New York | Main deliberative body: all 193 member states, one vote each |
| Security Council | New York | Peace and security: 15 members, 5 permanent with veto power |
| Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) | New York | Coordinates economic, social and environmental work, 54 elected members |
| Trusteeship Council | New York | Supervised trust territories; suspended operations in 1994 |
| International Court of Justice | The Hague (Netherlands) | Principal judicial organ, settles disputes between states |
| Secretariat | New York | Civil service of the UN, headed by the Secretary-General |
The Security Council concentrates the most visible power: alongside the ten members elected for two-year terms, the five permanent members (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States) can each block any substantive resolution with a veto, a privilege dating back to the 1945 settlement among the victorious powers.
A headquarters on international territory
The UN headquarters occupies an 18-acre site on the eastern side of Manhattan, overlooking the East River, on land purchased with a donation from John D. Rockefeller Jr. Under a 1947 agreement with the United States, the site is international territory: it is not US soil, the UN flag flies there, and the organization runs its own security and postal services. The complex hosts the General Assembly hall, the Security Council chamber and the Secretariat tower, and welcomes over a million visitors in normal years.
Beyond New York, the UN maintains major offices in Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi, and its family of specialized agencies includes bodies like the World Health Organization, UNESCO, UNICEF and the World Bank. As the organization moves through 2026 with Antonio Guterres completing his second term as Secretary-General, the questions driving searches (membership, veto power, headquarters status) are the same ones that have defined the institution since 1945.