In what can feel like an uncertain and scary world, the Global Peace Index, an enormous annual study which ranks 163 countries on 23 different factors, is a useful tool for shedding light on where we can expect safety and stability.
Every year there are shifts in the ranking, but one thing has remained constant since 2008 – Iceland is the safest place in the world.
Overall, Western and Central Europe have remained the world’s most peaceful regions, with eight of the top 10 safest countries located there, but Iceland continues to dominate and in 2025 recorded a two percent increase in its overall peacefulness.
However, all other nations have some catching up to do. According to the report, the peacefulness gap between Iceland and the second-place ranker, Ireland, is the same as between Ireland and the tenth-place ranker, Finland.
Elsewhere in the world, five countries made significant improvements in their rankings due to an increase in their peacefulness score: Azerbaijan soared 17 places, The Gambia by 16, Saudi Arabia and Peru leapt up by 14 and Uganda’s ranking improved by 12.
These are the 20 safest countries in the world
- Iceland
- Ireland
- New Zealand
- Austria
- Switzerland
- Singapore
- Portugal
- Denmark
- Slovenia
- Finland
- Czechia
- Japan
- Malaysia
- Netherlands
= Canada - Belgium
- Hungary
- Australia
- Croatia
- Germany
More findings from the Global Peace Index 2025
It’s far from just a ranking in this 122-page report. Some other standout stats are that overall global peacefulness has deteriorated by 0.36 percent over the last year, with 87 countries reporting worse conditions, and 74 reporting improvements.
For more information, head directly to the Global Peace Index report.
Oh, and if you need a hit of joy after reading all that, here’s a roundup of the winners of the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards 2025.
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