🇨🇾 Republic of Cyprus (Κύπρος)
Visiting: Safe
Cyprus is safe to visit. Two measures stand out: road deaths are very few, ranking 20th, and freedom is well protected, at 28th. The one area that slips is conflict: there is some exposure, placed 69th, though that is still inside the top half. Women's safety is good, violent crime is rare and LGBT rights are solid, with all three ranking between 29th and 60th.
Homicide
Intentional homicides per 100,000 people — lower is better.
Cyprus: 1.0
Ranked 39th in the world for the lowest homicide rate.
Why this rank?
One killing per 100,000 people a year is right on the line that marks the safest countries.
Is it safe to visit?
Violence is rare, and a visitor is fine.
Road Fatalities
Road-traffic deaths per 100,000 people per year — lower is better.
Cyprus: 3.9
Ranked 20th in the world for the safest roads.
Why this rank?
Just under four deaths per 100,000 people a year is comfortably under the EU average of four and a half.
Is it safe to visit?
Safe. Well below the world average.
Conflict
Conflict deaths inside the country in the last twelve months, as recorded by the Uppsala conflict database, civilians killed on purpose, and any UN sanctions or court order over a war. The worst of those sets the colour. Lower is better.
Cyprus: 1.16
Ranked 69th least conflict-affected country in the world.
Why this rank?
Nothing in twenty-five years. The last conflict death the Uppsala conflict database records in Cyprus was in July 1996.
Is it safe to visit?
Safe. The island has been split since 1974 with a UN buffer zone through the capital, but nobody has fired a shot in decades and you can cross freely.
Freedom
Six freedoms rated 0–4 by Freedom House — protest, speech, press, religion, movement and due process. The weakest rating sets the colour, and the total places the country inside it — higher is better.
Cyprus: 8.69
Ranked 28th freest country in the world.
Why this rank?
In Cyprus the lowest are protest and movement at 3. Total 22 of 24.
Is it safe to visit?
Political rights and civil liberties generally respected in the Republic, which controls only the south. Protest and movement are one step from the top. The north is ruled separately.
LGBT Rights
LGBT equality in law and daily life — higher is better.
Cyprus: 5.1
Ranked 60th most equal in the world for LGBT people.
Why this rank?
Civil unions since 2015 and conversion therapy banned in 2023, but no marriage or joint adoption. The law index sits at 66 and public opinion at 36.
Is it safe to visit?
Fine, with discretion. Daily life in the cities is quietly tolerant, and church influence keeps full equality off the table.
Women's Safety
Women's safety — feeling safe out at night, political violence against women, a fair hearing in court, and how normal violence at home is, with the night figure setting a floor on the colour — higher is better.
Cyprus: 8.38
Ranked 29th safest country in the world for women.
Why this rank?
The courts rate near perfect and violence at home is rare. Only 59 percent of women feel safe out alone at night, which is what holds it back.
Is it safe to visit?
For a woman travelling alone, Cyprus is safe.