The world’s safest countries have been revealed – with one of the smallest territories in Europe earning the top spot, following by nations in the Middle East and East Asia.
A 2025 study by Numbeo scored all 146 countries across the globe using a safety index, which assessed the overall level of crime in a given nation.
The safety index takes into account survey responses about how safe residents and visitors feel while walking during the day and night, as well as reports of homicide, muggings, robbery, sexual and physical attacks, harassment, discrimination, property crimes and more.
Coming out on top as the world’s safest nation is Andorra, with a score of 84.7 out of 100.
Andorra is a landlocked principality situated in the Pyrenees mountain range between Spain and France, and is one of the smallest countries in Europe at 468 square kilometres – with a tiny population of approximately 85,101 as of December 2023.
Andorra is almost entirely geared towards tourism, with tax-free shopping and an expanding selection of ski resorts scattered among the collection of towns nestled in the mountains.
Additionally, the country boasts a strong economy, virtually no crime and the world’s second highest life expectancy, all contributing factors to its general level of safety.
Meanwhile, the top five in Numbeo’s roundup were dominated by Middle Eastern and East Asian nations, including United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Taiwan and Oman – followed by the Isle of Man in sixth place.
Coming out on top as the world’s safest nation is Andorra, with a score of 84.7 out of 100 (pictured: Arcalis, Vallnord Ski Area, Andorra)
The United Arab Emirates, ranked number two with a score of 84.5, is renowned for its strict laws, a tough police force and zero-tolerance to crime (pictured: Dubai)
The United Arab Emirates, ranked number two with a score of 84.5, is renowned for its strict laws, a tough police force and a zero-tolerance policy towards crime, as well as its use of advanced surveillance technology.
Qatar, with its similarly conservative laws and low crime rate, ranked in third place with a score of 84.2.
Meanwhile, Taiwan, ranked fourth with a score of 82.9, is noted for its relatively low levels of violent crime and theft, having reported 1,207 crimes per 100,000 inhabitants in 2018, with just 2.3 of those being homicide.
It isn’t good news for the UK, which came in a dismal 87th on the list with a score of 51.7 – with the United States merely trailing behind at number 89 with a 50.8 safety score.
However, the two nations ranked much higher than dozens of countries that are currently regarded the most dangerous across the globe.
According to Numbeo’s findings, the world’s most dangerous country is Venezuela, ranked 146th with a safety score of just 19.3.
The South American nation, which shares borders with Colombia and Guyana, currently faces a dangerous climate due high levels of violent crime, economic and political instability, corruption and the presence of criminal and terrorist groups.
As of June 2024, over 7.7 million Venezuelans have left the country since 2014 due to years of hyperinflation, rampant corruption, economic mismanagement, and a lack of economic diversification.
Qatar, with its similarly conservative laws and low crime rate as the United Arab Emirates, ranked in third place with a score of 84.2 (pictured: Doho, Qatar)
Taiwan, ranked fourth at 82.9, is noted for its relatively low levels of violent crime and theft (pictured: a Mahayana Buddhist museum located in Dashu District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan)
Following in Venezuela’s lead is Papua New Guinea, ranked second most dangerous with a score of 19.7, along with Haiti ranking third with 21.1, and Afghanistan coming in fourth with 24.9.
It comes as a new leaderboard has revealed the top countries for immigrants to move to in 2025 – with Iceland coming out on top.
The Nordic nation triumphed with a score of 58.4 out of 100 based on 24 key criteria, including economic strength, living costs and the quality of healthcare and public transport.
But while the top 10 were dominated by other European nations, including Switzerland, Luxembourg, Norway, Ireland, Denmark and the Netherlands, the UK came a less impressive 19th – behind the USA in seventh place.