Andorra vs Moldova flag: how to tell them apart

Look at the emblem and the shape: Moldova shows an eagle on a 1:2 flag, and Andorra shows a quartered shield on a 7:10 flag.

Andorra

Moldova

How to tell them apart

Shape

Andorra's flag is 7:10, almost square by comparison. Moldova's is 1:2, twice as long as it is tall.

Stripe widths

Andorra's yellow middle stripe is slightly wider than the other two, in widths of 8:9:8. Moldova's three stripes are equal.

The emblem

Moldova's arms show a dark golden eagle holding an Orthodox cross in its beak, with a blue and red shield on its chest bearing an aurochs head. Andorra's shield has four quarters, for the Bishop of Urgell, the Count of Foix, Catalonia and Béarn.

Motto

Andorra's arms carry the motto Virtus Unita Fortior, meaning Virtue United is Stronger.

Cattle on both

Andorra's shield shows cattle, and Moldova's shows a single aurochs head with a star between its horns. They are the only two national flags with cattle on them.

Why they look alike

Moldova's blue, yellow and red tricolour is based on the flag of Romania, and its arms date from 1990.

Andorra's plain tricolour dates from 1866 and is traditionally linked to Napoleon III. Andorra standardised the design in 1993, after it joined the United Nations.

Official colours and ratio

Flag	Ratio	Adopted	Colours
Andorra	7:10	1866 (tricolour), 1993 (coat of arms)	Blue (Pantone 072 C) `#10069F` Yellow `#FEDD00` Red (Pantone 199 C) `#D50032`
Moldova	1:2	6 November 1990	Blue (Pantone 293 C) `#0046AE` Yellow (Pantone 109 C) `#FFD200` Red (Pantone 186 C) `#CC092F`