180 countries ranked by safety, peace, freedom and LGBT+ equality
Visiting: Top RecommendationLGBT+ visiting: Top Recommendation
Malta fits three UNESCO sites onto an island you can cross in an hour, including temples older than the pyramids. Valletta glows honey-coloured at sunset, the diving is the Med's best, and it holds the Mediterranean's top LGBT+ equality score — by a distance. It's very safe. It's also very popular and permanently under construction, so expect company in season.
Intentional homicides per 100,000 people — lower is better.
Malta: 0.9
Ranked 32nd in the world for the lowest homicide rate.
0.93 homicides per 100,000 people in 2024 — killings here are genuinely rare.
Lower than 79% of the 230 countries and territories measured.
How peaceful the country is — lower is better.
Malta: 1.3
Ranked 11th most peaceful country in the world.
Malta is one of the small states the Global Peace Index doesn't rank, so 1.32 is our own estimate built with the index's published 23-indicator method.
Low crime and a tiny military; a relatively high policing rate and recent patrol-vessel purchases are the main things adding to the score. Checked by rebuilding Iceland and Austria to within 0.02 of their official scores.
Personal and economic freedom — higher is better.
Malta: 8.5
Ranked 24th freest country in the world.
Freer than 87% of the 165 countries measured — 8.56 out of 10.
Day-to-day life (speech, movement, religion) scores 9.09; doing business and owning property, 7.82.
LGBT+ equality in law and daily life — higher is better.
Malta: 8.0
Ranked 7th most equal in the world for LGBT+ people.
One of the ten best countries on Earth for LGBT+ equality — scoring 80 out of 100.
The law runs ahead of public opinion here — legal protections score 100 out of 100, everyday attitudes 61.