The United Arab Emirates has been ranked the safest country in the world for 2025, leading 147 other nations.
Based on the latest data from Numbeo’s Mid-Year Safety Index, the UAE landed in first place with a safety index score of 85.2.
Right after the UAE, the top five safest countries include Andorra (84.8), Qatar (84.6), Taiwan (83.0), and Macao (China).
Aside from topping the safety index, the UAE also recorded the lowest crime index in the world, with a score of 14.8.
Where Gulf countries stand
Several Gulf nations also made it to the upper half of the list.
Oman is close behind at 6th place with a score of 81.4. Saudi Arabia ranks 14th (76.3), Bahrain 15th (76.2), and Kuwait is at 38th place (67.3).
Countries with the lowest safety scores
On the other end of the list, the countries with the lowest safety scores are South Africa (25.4), Afghanistan (24.8), Venezuela (19.5), Papua New Guinea (19.3), and Haiti, which ranked last at 148th with a score of 19.0.
Abu Dhabi as safest city
In addition to the country-level ranking, Numbeo also released its 2025 Safety Index by City, where cities in the United Arab Emirates once again dominated the list.
Abu Dhabi ranked first in the world, earning the highest safety index score of 88.8.
Ajman followed closely, securing the second spot globally with a score of 85.5. Dubai placed fourth with a safety index of 83.9, while Ras al-Khaimah came in fifth with a score of 83.8. Sharjah ranked sixth with a safety index of 83.7.
How safety index is measured
The index is part of Numbeo’s global database, which compiles user-contributed data on various aspects of quality of life, including perceptions of crime and safety in different countries.
The Safety Index considers how people feel about walking alone during daylight and at night, their experiences with theft, assault, and other crimes, and the overall trust in local law enforcement. A higher score indicates a safer environment.
