# Regions

![](https://2804061942-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-legacy-files/o/assets%2F-MK_UOo8zMmWaOdiaBwD%2F-MK_npHyNJIESgkpEflN%2F-MKa1Gaeelb86wOiPNfG%2Fimage.png?alt=media\&token=bbad3ecd-fc01-45ce-8fba-896dc394f1c0)

* **A geographical area on the planet containing at least one, but potentially multiple datacentres that are in close proximity and networked together with a low-latency network.**\\

* Azure has more regions than any other cloud provider.\\

* **Factors affecting which region you should choose:**\
  &#x20;**-** **Location** - To **minimize latency.**\
  &#x20;**-** **Services/features** - Some are exclusive to only some regions.\
  &#x20;**- Price.**\\

* Some global Azure services that do not require you to select a particular region, such as Microsoft Azure Active Directory, Microsoft Azure Traffic Manager, and Azure DNS.\\

* **Special regions:**\
  &#x20;**-** **US DoD Central, US Gov Virginia, US Gov Iowa -** For **US government agencies and partners.**\
  &#x20;**- China East and China North -** China has **strict compliance and regulatory laws**, so it doesn't let let data out of China; Microsoft does not directly maintain the datacentres.
