Planning a first trip and asking which are the safest countries to travel to? Iceland ranks first in the Global Peace Index 2026, but a national rank is only a starting point and does not guarantee safety for every traveller or every city.
The sections below explain what that rank is built from, where it stops being useful, and how to check a destination yourself. For wider preparation, the travel safety tips hub covers the practical habits that apply wherever you go.
Reading the global shortlist
The Global Peace Index is the list most often quoted when people ask about the safest countries to visit. According to a summary of the June 2026 report, the index assesses the level of peacefulness and security across the world’s countries, which makes it a broad comparison tool rather than a guide to a particular street or resort.
That breadth is its strength and its limit. It cannot tell you whether a particular neighbourhood, transport route or season carries risk, so it should never be the last step before booking.
Iceland: the current leader
Iceland ranks first in the Global Peace Index 2026, and IAS Services reports that it tops the charts in all three domains the report considers. That consistency matters more than a narrow lead on one measure, because it means the country does well on societal safety, on conflict and on militarisation alike.
Iceland suits travellers who want a low-conflict, low-tension country as the base for a trip, including those making a first independent journey. Its capital also appears separately: the same source notes that Reykjavik features among the top 10 safest cities in the GRI 2026, a city-level index that is distinct from the national one.
The limits are worth stating plainly. A top national rank describes the country’s overall peacefulness. It does not describe weather, remote-area conditions or the choices you make once you arrive, and it does not stand in for checking current official advice before departure.
What the Global Peace Index measures
The Global Peace Index covers more than twenty indicators, including the level of crime and political stability. Those indicators are grouped into three domains, as IAS Services describes them:
- Societal Safety and Security: everyday conditions inside the country, including crime. This domain is the closest to what a visitor experiences day to day.
- Ongoing Domestic and International Conflict: whether the country is affected by war or conflict, internally or abroad. It is the domain that most separates a stable destination from a high-risk one.
- Militarisation: the degree to which a country is militarised. It reflects the wider security picture, but it has the least direct link to a tourist’s daily comfort.
Read this way, a country’s overall score blends very different things. A destination can look strong overall while one domain is weaker, so it is worth checking which domain pulls a rank up or down before treating the headline number as relevant to your trip.
How safety rankings are calculated
Safety rankings combine several factors into one comparable score. IAS Services lists the typical ingredients: political stability, the occurrence or extent of war or conflict, crime rate, terrorism and military expenditure. Different publishers weigh and select these differently, which is why two lists can order the same countries differently.
Three practical consequences follow for a reader:
- Check the ingredients. A ranking heavy on conflict and militarisation says less about petty theft than one built on crime statistics.
- Treat a crime index as a slice. Because crime is only one input among many in the Global Peace Index, a standalone crime index shows a narrower picture than the full ranking and should be read alongside it.
- Compare editions like with like. Scores belong to a specific year’s report, so use the 2026 figures together rather than mixing them with older lists.
National rankings versus city-level safety
A national score averages a whole country, while visitors spend their time in a handful of cities and towns. The two levels answer different questions, and the comparison below shows how to use each.
| Measure | What it covers | Planning use |
|---|---|---|
| Global Peace Index | Country level; more than 20 indicators in three domains | Narrowing a long list of countries to a short one |
| City-level index (GRI 2026) | City level; Reykjavik is among the top 10 safest cities | Comparing cities once the country is chosen |
| Crime index | Crime only, which is one input to the national ranking | Checking everyday risk in the area you will stay |
Figures are drawn from VisitWorld’s summary of the 2026 index and IAS Services.
If you are choosing between safest cities for tourists, use the national rank only to confirm the country is stable, then compare cities with city-level measures and local information. A high-ranked country can still contain areas that deserve more caution, and the reverse can also hold for a pleasant city in a country with a weaker national score.
Are safe countries safe for every traveller?
No ranking can promise that. IAS Services points out that social and cultural climate can matter beyond the index, especially for particular segments of the population such as women or people belonging to the LGBTQ+ community. A peaceful country in the Global Peace Index sense may still feel different to travellers in those groups.
Treat that as a prompt to add your own filters. Solo travellers, women, LGBTQ+ travellers, people with health needs and families each weigh risks differently. Look for destination-specific guidance from your own government and from community groups relevant to you, then decide whether a high-ranked country fits your situation or whether a different one is the better match.
Countries at the other end of the ranking
At the opposite end of the 2026 list, the VisitWorld summary names states that continue to face serious security challenges, among them Russia, Sudan, DR Congo, Ukraine and Israel. These are the lowest-ranked countries in the list, and the ranking reflects conflict and security conditions rather than the experience of any single visitor.
A low rank is a reason to read current government travel advice closely and to reassess the trip, not a verdict on individual regions within a country. The same logic applies in reverse to the top of the list: the headline rank opens the question and official guidance answers it.
A checklist for verifying a destination
Use the ranking to shortlist, then confirm the specific place. A travel risk assessment checklist turns the steps below into a fuller pre-trip routine.
- Identify the domain that matters. Check whether a country’s rank is driven by societal safety, conflict or militarisation, and weigh the first most heavily for a leisure trip.
- Compare at city level. Look at a city-level index or local crime information for the places you plan to stay.
- Read your government’s travel advice. Check current official advisories for the destination and any regions you will cross.
- Match the risks to your profile. Consider whether social and cultural conditions affect you personally.
- Prepare for everyday problems. Learn about common tourist scams, since petty crime can occur anywhere.
Frequently asked questions
Which edition of the Global Peace Index is the latest?
The 2026 edition, covered in the June 2026 report, assessed peacefulness and security in 163 countries according to VisitWorld.
Is a peace index the same as a travel advisory?
No. The index compares countries on peacefulness and security, while a government advisory addresses a specific destination at a specific time. Use the index to shortlist and the advisory to decide.
Do the safest countries still have crime?
Yes. VisitWorld notes that even the world’s safest countries experience criminal offences, so basic precautions still apply.
