What is the best country for beginners in Victoria 3?

Pick Belgium for a first campaign: small territory, coal and iron, and neighbours the wiki considers unthreatening. If you want more room, Sweden is the next choice. Both are among the four countries recommended for the Learn the Game objective, alongside New Granada and Dai Nam, which are noticeably rougher starts.

Is Japan a good country for beginners in Victoria 3?

Opinions differ. The developers note that Japan has long been seen as an accessible starter nation and say they tried to retain that in 1.13. The wiki still notes that it faces significant early challenges and unique content. The country starts unrecognized and under the closed Sakoku policy, so keep it for a later campaign.

Can you use the Learn the Game objective with any country?

Yes. The tutorial dev diary states that you may pick whatever country you want, and that some countries are simply offered as potentially easier. The campaign remains a real one, not a closed scenario. You can therefore keep the tutorial while playing Sweden, Spain or any other country that appeals to you.

Which countries should you avoid in a first Victoria 3 campaign?

The wiki warns that Japan and China face significant challenges early on. A 2022 ranking also lists Great Britain, Russia, the Ottoman Empire and the Sikh Empire among the hardest. The risk comes from size, powerful neighbours and pressing reforms. Also avoid tiny countries with no coastline or too few states.

Victoria 3: the best country for beginners (2026 guide)

For a first campaign in Victoria 3, pick Belgium, then Sweden if you want a larger country. Both starts are among the four countries the wiki ties to the “Learn the Game” objective, alongside New Granada and Dai Nam. Leave Great Britain, Russia and China for later.

The list comes from the wiki, whose pages were verified on versions ranging from 1.10 to 1.12 depending on the country. The preliminary 1.15 changelog, published on 29 October 2026 for a release announced on 5 November, names neither Belgium, Dai Nam nor New Granada. Still, compare with the selection screen in your version.

The four Learn the Game countries

Pick the objective first, not the country. The tutorial dev diary states that Learn the Game remains a real campaign, playable with any country. The suggested ones are simply presented as potentially easier, because of their position and how much there is to manage.

That choice has a concrete effect on the campaign. The same diary says the objective lowers AI aggressiveness by default, and that the AI is reluctant to start diplomatic plays against you before you show a handle on the basics. It predates release, but it explains the logic: the diary also says a landlocked single-province vassal might not be the ideal learning experience.

Country	Start	Difficulty	What the campaign teaches
Belgium	Recognized minor power	Easiest	Industry, the market, relations with great powers
Sweden	Recognized major power	Medium	Mining, liberal reform, Scandinavian unification
New Granada	Recognized minor power	High	Legitimacy, infrastructure, recognition
Dai Nam	Unrecognized regional power	High	Laws, interest groups, leaving unrecognized status

The wiki guide itself ranks Belgium, Sweden and Dai Nam in that order. New Granada’s difficulty is our reading of its page, not an official ranking.

Belgium: our pick for a first campaign

What matters here is the time you are given. According to the wiki, Great Britain, France and Prussia stay on good terms with Belgium and almost never go after it. You can learn to build without watching your borders every month.

The country page, verified for 1.11, calls it one of the strongest minor powers. France protects its independence through the Declaration of Liège and Great Britain offers a reciprocity treaty, two agreements bound for 10 years. You get plenty of coal and iron, plus lead and sulfur in Wallonia. The wiki also cites a strong industrial base and great access to the vital resources for industrialization, which is why this start forgives early mistakes in your build order.

The one event to prepare for is the London Conference on the dispute with the Netherlands, if you accept mediation. It offers four outcomes, and only Belgian Claims keeps both territories. The great power AIs lean towards the other three, so the page advises rejecting it, after improving relations with the regional powers that the refusal will upset.

After that, two goals open up. Your small army is enough to build a colonial empire by attacking smaller unrecognized countries. The United Netherlands requires conquering the Netherlands and Luxembourg, a longer-term project that gives the campaign a clear finish line.

Sweden: the pick if you want more room

Sweden teaches you to run a larger country without the price of an immediate war. The wiki notes that its position makes other people’s wars an option, not a necessity. It holds Norway in a personal union and trades freely with Prussia for 8 years.

Three points guide your first years.

The starting point. The page, partly verified for 1.12, advises building first in Svealand, the country’s best state.
The missing roads. Scania has an infrastructure shortage: the Road Maintenance decree holds until railways arrive.
Coal. The page counts 8 levels in Scania for Sweden, Norway and Denmark combined, so a shortage comes sooner or later.
The long goal. Forming Scandinavia requires Pan-nationalism, and Finland remains a cause to champion.

It also credits Sweden with a strong literacy rate and great resource modifiers for state specialization, two advantages that make a slower, peaceful build viable.

If you play Sweden after 1.15, watch one neighbour. The changelog says Prussia will take more interest in Scandinavia, which may change the calm described in older guides.

New Granada and Dai Nam: two rougher schools

Both countries are on the list, but they do not offer the same comfort. New Granada starts with an illegitimate government and a 10% Influence penalty, because Spain does not recognize its independence. Industry is almost absent and the Andes slow everything down, hence the priority on railways. Brazil also claims Amazonas, and only the Petite Bourgeoisie backs the government at the start. The reward is clear: forming Gran Colombia after researching Nationalism.

Dai Nam, whose page dates from 1.10, serves as an introduction to unrecognized countries. On paper, 6.57 million people promise a lot. Yet the page lists 8.8% literacy, an Absolute Monarchy, Closed Borders and Landowners in power. China borders the country to the north, and rival Siam stays under truce until 1839. It is also the only unrecognized country on the list. The wiki calls it a relatively tame experience for that status, but keep it for learning reforms.

Japan: why opinions differ

Japan appears in nearly every ranking, and the sources do not agree. In 2021, a developer called it very beginner friendly. In April 2026, the 1.13 dev diary recalled that starter reputation and said the team tried to retain it, especially on the historical track.

The wiki frames it differently: unlike Dai Nam, Japan and China face significant challenges and unique content early on. On Steam, a March 2025 thread shows the same split. One player says they learned the game there, because the country touches every mechanic. Another answers that it is unrecognized, technologically backward and isolationist, and that it can discourage a newcomer. These remain personal accounts, not established facts.

Our reading: a good country, but not for a first campaign. Japan starts unrecognized and under Sakoku, two concepts Belgium spares you. If you own The Great Wave and enjoy being guided by events, try it; otherwise, save it for later.

Countries to keep for later

A Game Rant ranking from November 2022 remains useful on the fundamentals, even though the game has changed a lot since.

Great Britain. You must follow a huge economy, colonies and dominions, with a navy spread across the globe.
Russia. Its size makes states hard to track, its technology lags, and a large population must stay calm to avoid revolution.
The Ottoman Empire. The country is already in decline, with many states to modernize.
The Sikh Empire. Its neighbours are strong, the terrain is difficult, and its laws and technology lag behind.
China. The wiki groups it with Japan among the starts with significant early challenges.

Also skip very warlike starts in your first hours. Update 1.15 reworks war support and lets you enforce war goals during a conflict. Older advice on opening wars may therefore no longer hold.

Three criteria if your country is not on the list

Want another country? The wiki also names Spain, Persia, the United States, Brazil and Colombia as relatively accessible. To judge any other start, keep these three criteria.

Peace at the start. The wiki asks for a country with no ongoing war or immediate threat.
The right size. Neither too large to manage nor too small to act. PCGamesN suggested four or five states and sea access, in 2022.
Coal and iron. The wiki advises against a country that lacks them, especially an isolationist one.

Our complete guide also names the Netherlands for a first campaign, slightly more complex because of the East Indies. It then sets out a progression: Sardinia-Piedmont after 50 hours, then Prussia, Japan or the Ottoman Empire after 100 hours.