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SafetyScorer

Ranking

Safest Countries to Visit in 2026

The 25 highest-scoring countries we cover. Each score is built for visitors, not residents. It combines homicide rates, conflict and terrorism, road deaths, health risks and natural hazards with the theft and scams tourists meet. Open any country for the numbers, the official travel advice and the sources behind its score.

Updated · Scores update with each page

The ranking

  1. Monaco

    Monaco is one of the most heavily policed places in the world and street crime is rare; there was no homicide or armed robbery in 2025. The risks are theft on the trains and at Nice airport on the way in, busy steep streets, and the crowds of Grand Prix week.

    Score 93, grade A

  2. Singapore

    Singapore shares the top score of the countries we cover. Street crime is rare and roads are among the safest in Asia. The risks a visitor actually faces are dengue, seasonal haze from Indonesia, phone scams and laws far stricter than at home.

    Score 93, grade A

  3. Switzerland

    Switzerland is one of the safest countries in the world for visitors, with 0.6 homicides per 100,000 people and some of Europe's safest roads. Most serious harm happens in the mountains, through falls, avalanches and sudden weather, while pickpocketing has grown around Geneva.

    Score 93, grade A

  4. Iceland

    Iceland is the most peaceful country in the world on the 2026 Global Peace Index and crime against visitors is rare. Nature is the risk. Sneaker waves, glacier collapses, eruptions on the Reykjanes peninsula and fast-changing weather on rural roads cause most serious incidents involving tourists.

    Score 92, grade A

  5. Japan

    Japan is one of the safest countries in the world for travellers, with a homicide rate near 0.2 per 100,000. The risks that matter are natural ones (earthquakes, typhoons, heat) and drink-spiking bar scams in a few Tokyo nightlife districts.

    Score 92, grade A

  6. Luxembourg

    Luxembourg is one of the safest countries in Europe for visitors. Murders are rare enough that one case moves the rate, and there is no terrorism record. The real risks are pickpockets around the main station and on buses, and the roads, where deaths rose from 18 in 2024 to 29 in 2025.

    Score 91, grade A

  7. Denmark

    Denmark is one of Europe's safest countries for visitors, with 0.87 homicides per 100,000 people in 2024 and about 2.3 road deaths per 100,000 in 2025. Watch for pickpockets in central Copenhagen and gang trouble late at night in Christiania and Nørrebro. The terrorism threat is rated serious.

    Score 90, grade A

  8. Ireland

    Ireland is one of the safer countries in Europe, with about 0.65 homicides per 100,000 people and no gun killings in 2025. Visitors should watch for pickpockets and late-night trouble in central Dublin, and drive carefully on narrow rural roads, where road deaths rose to 185 in 2025.

    Score 90, grade A

  9. Malta

    Malta is one of the safest places to visit in the Mediterranean, with fewer than one homicide per 100,000 people and no recent history of terrorism. The risks are on its packed roads, in the sea when the red flag is up, in the summer heat and in a few Paceville bars.

    Score 90, grade A

  10. Norway

    Norway is a very safe country for visitors, with about 0.7 homicides per 100,000 people and around 2 road deaths per 100,000. What hurts people here is nature. Avalanches kill about six or seven people a winter, mountain weather turns fast even in summer, and rescue is far away in the Arctic north.

    Score 90, grade A

  11. Slovenia

    Slovenia is one of the safest countries in Europe, with 0.7 homicides per 100,000 people and 4th place on the 2026 Global Peace Index. The risks are outdoors; the Julian Alps killed a record 50 people in 2025, road deaths rose 35% that year, and the August 2023 floods were the worst disaster in the country's history.

    Score 90, grade A

  12. Brunei

    Brunei is one of the safest places to visit in South-East Asia, with very little crime and no history of terrorism. The real risks are its strict laws, including a Sharia penal code that covers some acts by non-Muslims, careless driving, dengue and crocodiles near rivers.

    Score 89, grade A

  13. Finland

    Finland is a very safe country for visitors, with a Level 1 US advisory and 9th place on the 2026 Global Peace Index. Its homicide rate, about 1.4 per 100,000, is mostly violence between people who know each other. The real risks are winter cold, remote Lapland, lakes and wildlife on dark roads.

    Score 89, grade A

  14. Andorra

    Andorra is a very safe country for visitors, with little street crime and no terrorism record. Most harm comes from the mountains (avalanches, ski collisions, falls on trails and storms) and from steep roads in winter. Bring full travel insurance, because the EHIC and GHIC are not valid.

    Score 88, grade A

  15. Austria

    Austria is one of the safest countries in Europe, with about 0.8 homicides per 100,000 people and 6th place on the 2026 Global Peace Index. The real risks are in the mountains and on the roads, where deaths rose to 397 in 2025, plus pickpockets in Vienna and a terrorism threat the FCDO calls likely.

    Score 88, grade A

  16. Czechia

    Czechia (the Czech Republic) is a very safe country, with 0.77 homicides per 100,000 people and 13th place on the 2026 Global Peace Index. Most problems are about money in Prague, from pickpockets to exchange offices. Hepatitis A cases jumped in 2025, and tick-borne encephalitis is common in the countryside.

    Score 88, grade A

  17. Germany

    Germany is a safe country to visit, with 0.91 homicides per 100,000 people and about 34 road deaths per million. The main concern is terrorism and copycat attacks on crowds, including a vehicle attack on Berlin's Pride event in July 2026, followed by pickpocketing in big-city stations and on public transport.

    Score 88, grade A

  18. Liechtenstein

    Liechtenstein is a very safe country to visit, with little street crime and no terrorism record. One domestic killing in late 2025 pushed up a homicide rate that rests on tiny numbers. For visitors the risks are Alpine ones (avalanches, rockfall, storms, falls on mountain paths) plus ticks in summer.

    Score 88, grade A

  19. Netherlands

    The Netherlands is a safe country for visitors, with about 0.7 homicides per 100,000 people and some of the best flood protection in the world. The things to watch are bikes, which now account for more road deaths than cars, pickpockets around Amsterdam Centraal and on Schiphol trains, and canals after a night out.

    Score 88, grade A

  20. San Marino

    San Marino is very safe for visitors. The FCDO calls street crime very rare, roads killed 12 people from 2016 to 2025, and the main practical risks are steep, busy roads and medical bills, because the UK's GHIC and the EU's EHIC are not accepted. Crime data is thin, so confidence is medium.

    Score 88, grade A

  21. Sweden

    Sweden is a safe country for visitors, with about 0.8 killings per 100,000 people in 2025 and around 2 road deaths per 100,000. Its gang violence is real but aimed at rivals and their homes: shootings fell to 158 in 2025, while bombings rose to 189. Pickpockets in Stockholm and Arctic distances are the everyday risks.

    Score 88, grade A

  22. United Kingdom

    The United Kingdom is a safe destination with about 1.1 homicides per 100,000 people and some of the safest roads in the world. The two things visitors should take seriously are a terrorism threat level of severe and phone snatching in central London.

    Score 88, grade A

  23. Hungary

    Hungary is a safe country to visit, with 0.72 homicides per 100,000 people and a Level 1 US advisory. The risks visitors meet are money ones, from pickpockets on Budapest's metro to bars that present huge bills. Roads are safer than they were but still behind Austria and Czechia.

    Score 87, grade A

  24. Estonia

    Estonia is a safe country to visit, with a Level 1 US advisory, 25th place on the 2026 Global Peace Index and 43 road deaths in 2025. The homicide rate, about 1.8 per 100,000, is higher than in Western Europe but rarely touches visitors. Russian airspace violations and GPS jamming are the new risks.

    Score 86, grade A

  25. Portugal

    Portugal is one of the most peaceful countries in the world, 7th on the 2026 Global Peace Index, with about 0.9 homicides per 100,000 people in 2025. The risks are more road deaths per head than Spain or Italy, large summer wildfires inland, and pickpocketing in central Lisbon and Porto.

    Score 86, grade A

How the ranking works

Every country has its own page with six scored factors. Violent crime carries 25%, based on UNODC Homicide rateThe number of people killed on purpose each year for every 100,000 residents. It is the most comparable crime figure between countries.More in the glossary and assault risk. Conflict and terrorism and road safety count for 20% each, health risks for 15%, and natural hazards and petty crime for 10% each. The list shows the 25 highest scores, sorted from the top, and it changes whenever we update a country page. We do not write scores into this text, because the list always shows the current ones.

The factors, rubrics and the conflict ceiling are on how we score countries.

What the safest countries have in common

Almost every country near the top has a Homicide rateThe number of people killed on purpose each year for every 100,000 residents. It is the most comparable crime figure between countries.More in the glossary of about 1 per 100,000 people or lower, and none has armed conflict on its territory. Road deaths are low too: under 4 per 100,000 in many of them and under 8 in nearly all. Health care is good enough that visitors can use it without worry. That is why the list leans so heavily to Europe, with a few entries from Asia.

Within the group, scores separate on smaller things. Some larger countries, such as Germany and the United Kingdom, lose points on the conflict and terrorism factor. Iceland and Japan face earthquakes and volcanoes, but both prepare well. Pickpocketing in busy European capitals costs some countries a few points on petty crime. Road safety pulls down some countries that would otherwise be close to the top.

What the score does and does not mean

The score describes risk to visitors, averaged over the whole country. It says little about one neighbourhood, one hiking route or one season. A very safe country can still have a dangerous mountain road or a pickpocket hotspot, and each country page lists the specific risks and how to avoid them.

Before you go, read your own government's travel advice, which can change faster than any ranking, and the page for the cities you plan to visit.

Questions

What is the safest country in the world to visit?

The country at the top of this list has the highest score we give right now. The leaders are very close, and the order among them can change with a single update, so treat the top ten as a group of very safe places. What sets them apart is usually road safety, natural hazards or petty crime, not violence.

Is the safest country also the best for solo women?

Usually, but the score is not a measure built for that question. Our country score covers violent crime, petty crime and conflict for all visitors. For walking alone after dark, our city pages have a separate factor, and the city you stay in matters more than the country.

Why are small countries like Monaco and Liechtenstein near the top?

Small, wealthy states tend to have very little violent crime, safe roads and excellent health care, and none faces conflict. In a small population one incident can move the Homicide rateThe number of people killed on purpose each year for every 100,000 residents. It is the most comparable crime figure between countries.More in the glossary a lot, and their pages explain that. They are genuinely low-risk places to visit.

Why is the United States not on this list?

The US has far more homicides and road deaths than Western Europe or Japan, and both factors carry a lot of weight. Its page also describes a severe terrorism and political-violence picture. The [US page](/countries/united-states) explains the numbers.

Does a high score mean I do not need travel insurance?

No. Even the safest countries have road accidents, falls, theft and sudden illness, and treatment for visitors can be very expensive. Insurance with medical cover is worth having everywhere.