As of 2026, the United States flag displays 50 stars.
Each star represents one U.S. state, while the thirteen alternating red and white stripes represent the original thirteen colonies. The current design has nine rows of stars, alternating between rows of six and five.
The 50-star flag became official on July 4, 1960, after Hawaii joined the Union. Alaska had already become the 49th state in 1959, so the flag changed twice in quick succession as new states were admitted.
The number of stripes did not grow with every new state. Congress reduced the flag to thirteen stripes in 1818 to preserve the connection with the original colonies, while adding a star for each new state. This is why the modern flag has 50 stars but only 13 stripes.