As of March 2026, the eight planets of our solar system have 434 confirmed moons between them. Saturn leads with 285, Jupiter has 101, Uranus has 29, Neptune has 16, Mars has 2, and Earth has 1. Mercury and Venus have none. But How Many Moons Does Each Planet Have ?
That answer changes often. Astronomers announced 128 new moons for Saturn in 2025 and 15 more for Saturn and Jupiter in March 2026, so any older chart is probably out of date. This guide gives the current count, explains why the numbers keep climbing, and answers the questions people ask most.
Moons of each planet: the 2026 count
| Planet | Confirmed moons | Largest moon |
|---|---|---|
| Mercury | 0 | None |
| Venus | 0 | None |
| Earth | 1 | The Moon |
| Mars | 2 | Phobos |
| Jupiter | 101 | Ganymede |
| Saturn | 285 | Titan |
| Uranus | 29 | Titania |
| Neptune | 16 | Triton |
These totals follow announcements by the IAU Minor Planet Center, the clearinghouse that records new moon discoveries. Some agency web pages lag behind and still show older numbers such as 95 for Jupiter or 146 for Saturn, so you may see different figures elsewhere.
Explore the moons of every planet
Pick a planet below to see its moon count, its largest moon, and a dot for every confirmed moon.
How many moons does each planet have?
Pick a world. Each dot is one confirmed moon.
Counts as of March 2026, following announcements by the IAU Minor Planet Center. Jupiter and Saturn totals keep rising as telescopes find tiny, faint moons. Sources: NASA and the Minor Planet Center.
Mercury and Venus: the two planets with no moons
Mercury and Venus are the only planets without a moon. Both orbit close to the Sun, and scientists think the Sun’s gravity makes it very hard for a moon to stay in a stable orbit around a planet that close in. A moon would also be pulled on by tides, which can slowly change its orbit until it is lost or crashes into the planet.
There are still plenty of ideas about whether either planet once had a moon. For now, no moon has been found around either one, and they remain the only two planets with a count of zero.
Earth: one large moon
Earth has a single natural satellite, the Moon. It is about 3,474 km wide, roughly a quarter of Earth’s diameter, which is unusually large compared to its planet. The leading explanation is that a Mars-sized body hit the young Earth and the debris gathered into the Moon.
The Moon creates our ocean tides and slowly drifts away from Earth by about 3.8 cm a year. Scientists measure that distance by bouncing laser light off mirrors left on the lunar surface. You can read more about the Moon in our Solar System guide and see some of the latest views in Artemis pictures from space.
Myth check: Earth does not have extra moons. Small asteroids are sometimes captured for a few months or years and are called mini-moons, but they leave again and are not counted.
Mars: two small, lumpy moons
Mars has two moons, Phobos and Deimos, discovered by Asaph Hall in 1877. Both are small and irregular, more like potatoes than spheres. Phobos is about 22 km across and circles Mars about three times a day. Deimos is smaller and takes about 30 hours to complete an orbit.
Many scientists think they are captured asteroids, though other ideas exist. Because Mars is a major target for exploration, these moons are also studied as possible stepping stones for future missions. For the planet itself, see Mars rovers from Sojourner to Perseverance and the search for life on Mars.
Jupiter: 101 moons and counting
Jupiter has 101 confirmed moons. In March 2026, four more were added to the list.
The four largest, Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, are called the Galilean moons because Galileo spotted them in 1610. Each is a world of its own:
- Io is the most volcanically active body in the solar system.
- Europa hides a salty ocean under its ice and is a top target in the search for life. NASA’s Europa Clipper mission is on its way there.
- Ganymede is the largest moon in the solar system, at 5,268 km across. It is bigger than the planet Mercury.
- Callisto has one of the oldest, most heavily cratered surfaces known.
The other 97 or so Jovian moons are small and mostly orbit far from the planet. Learn more in our Jupiter overview.
Saturn: the planet with the most moons
Saturn has 285 confirmed moons, more than all the other planets combined. A team led by Edward Ashton at Academia Sinica in Taiwan announced 128 of them in 2025, and 11 more arrived in March 2026. Only 64 of the 285 have proper names so far.
Two of Saturn’s moons stand out:
- Titan, at 5,150 km wide, is the only moon with a thick atmosphere. It has lakes of liquid methane and ethane.
- Enceladus sprays water vapour and ice from cracks near its south pole, which points to a hidden ocean.
Both are key targets for astrobiology, the study of where life could exist beyond Earth. Saturn’s rings are made of ice and rock particles, and these are not counted as moons.
Uranus: 29 moons named after literary characters
Uranus has 29 confirmed moons. The newest was found by the James Webb Space Telescope in 2025 and is only about 10 km across. You can read about other Webb results in James Webb Space Telescope discoveries.
Uranus moons are named after characters from the works of Shakespeare and Alexander Pope. The five major moons are Miranda, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania and Oberon. Titania is the largest at about 1,578 km wide.
Neptune: 16 moons and one backward orbit
Neptune has 16 confirmed moons. Two small ones were announced in 2024.
The largest, Triton, orbits Neptune in the opposite direction to the planet’s spin. That backward orbit suggests Triton did not form there and was captured later. At 2,707 km wide, it is also home to geysers of nitrogen that Voyager 2 spotted in 1989. See Voyager’s long journey for more on that mission.
Why do the moon counts keep changing?
Three things push the numbers up.
Better telescopes. The newest moons are tiny and extremely faint, often between 5 and 25 km across. Modern cameras and software can spot them, and older surveys could not.
Many small, distant moons. Saturn and Jupiter each have swarms of small irregular moons far from the planet. These are probably pieces of larger captured bodies that were broken up by collisions.
Confirmation takes time. A moon is added to the official list only after astronomers track it for long enough to prove it really orbits the planet. That is why announcements arrive in batches.
Expect the totals for Jupiter and Saturn to rise again. Uranus and Neptune may also gain more, since they are far away and harder to survey.
What counts as a moon?
A moon is a natural object that orbits a planet or a dwarf planet. There is no official minimum size, which is one reason the counts can grow so quickly. Ring particles and temporary visitors are not counted, but small, stable, confirmed objects are.
Do dwarf planets have moons?
Yes. Dwarf planets are not included in the planet totals above, but several have moons:
| Dwarf planet | Known moons |
|---|---|
| Pluto | 5 (Charon, Styx, Nix, Kerberos, Hydra) |
| Haumea | 2 (Hiʻiaka, Namaka) |
| Eris | 1 (Dysnomia) |
| Makemake | 1 (MK2) |
| Gonggong | 1 (Xiangliu) |
Charon is about half the width of Pluto, so the two orbit a point in space between them. Adding these 10 moons to the planetary total gives about 444 known moons in the solar system.
Frequently asked questions
Which planet has the most moons?
Saturn has the most, with 285 confirmed moons as of March 2026. Jupiter is second with 101.
Which planets have no moons?
Mercury and Venus are the only planets with no moons.
How many moons does Jupiter have?
Jupiter has 101 confirmed moons. The four largest are Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto.
How many moons does Saturn have?
Saturn has 285 confirmed moons. Its largest moon is Titan.
What is the largest moon in the solar system?
Ganymede, a moon of Jupiter, is the largest at 5,268 km across. Saturn’s Titan is second at 5,150 km.
How many moons are in the solar system in total?
The eight planets have 434 confirmed moons. Counting the moons of the five main dwarf planets brings the total to about 444.
Does Earth have more than one moon?
No. Earth has one permanent moon. Small objects that are briefly captured, called mini-moons, are not counted.
Why do some websites show different numbers?
Some sources update more slowly than others. Always check the date on a chart, and compare it with the latest Minor Planet Center announcements or NASA’s moons page.
Key takeaways
- Saturn: 285 moons. Jupiter: 101. Uranus: 29. Neptune: 16. Mars: 2. Earth: 1. Mercury and Venus: 0.
- The counts keep rising because telescopes keep finding small, faint moons.
- Ganymede is the largest moon. Titan is the only moon with a thick atmosphere.
- Dwarf planets have moons too, including Pluto with five.
For the full tour of the Sun, planets and smaller bodies, return to our Solar System guide.