Thinking of taking a trip and wondering which are the safest cities in the world? Look no more, as these are the cities where you’ll feel safest.
60 cities were analyzed based on 57 indicators covering digital security, health security, infrastructure security and personal security in The Safe Cities Index 2019. This report from The Economist Intelligence Unit reveals 56% of people live in urban areas – and 68% of them will do so by 2050. Urbanization is a trend that has been on the rise for decades, the report shows.
What does safe mean for a city?
The report quotes this answer by Mr. Badiane: “in any city where you can often see a woman walking alone at night, you can bet that is a safe city.”
However, that’s only the personal safety taken into consideration, as there are other areas as well: the political environment, the health security, and infrastructure security.
An important thing to realize is that different cities may rank differently in these areas. So a city may be number one in personal security but can rank 3, for instance, on digital security.
Also, not only the big cities are safe – but also some smaller ones.
Safest cities in the world
Things change and numerous factors influence the top safest cities in the world. For instance, Hong Kong, number 9 in 2017, is number 20 in 2019 as there were some protests there. So it’s good to always pay attention to news and do some research before you travel.
The Safe Cities Index 2019 by The Economist Intelligence Unit presents the best cities for safety.
So if you are wondering which cities feel safest – and not only feel, but are safe! – this top presents them.
These are the safest places to live in the world – if you are a digital nomad or if you want to change your location as you don’t feel safe at home.
These are also the safest destinations in the world for everyone planning trips and looking for new ideas of places to visit.
By now, I have to tell you that it’s no surprise that many of the top 10 safest cities in the world are from Asia (several of them from Japan).
For me, it’s no surprise that these Asian cities are world’s safest cities as I’ve met people from Japan and South Korea and they all told me how safe they felt at home, how they were unprepared for pickpockets and for the insecurity in some countries or cities.
If you want to learn how to deal with pickpockets, here’s your complete guide to being safe on vacation.
So, let’s see the safest cities worldwide.
The top 5 safest cities based on digital security
1. Tokyo (read here a list of things to know before visiting Tokyo)
2. Singapore
3. Chicago
4. Washington, DC
5 = Los Angeles (here’s a presentation of the natural wonders in LA)
5 = San Francisco
All of these cities got the same rankings in regards to the indicators, but they vary in terms of the percentage of residents with internet access (91% in Tokyo.)
Now, let’s continue to see the safest places to visit in the world based on health security, infrastructure security, and personal security.
I’m also recommending you to discover the safest airlines in the world (including the safest budget airlines) and the most populous cities worldwide – including the megacities!
The top 5 safest cities based on health security
1. Osaka
2. Tokyo
3. Seoul
4 = Amsterdam
4 = Stockholm
The top 5 safest cities based on infrastructure security
1. Singapore
2. Osaka
3. Barcelona
4. Tokyo
5. Madrid
The top 5 safest cities based on personal security
1. Singapore
2. Copenhagen
3. Hong Kong
4. Tokyo
5. Wellington
As you can see, there are cities from across the globe in the top 5 – depending on the ranking factor. The only city ranking among the top 5 in all regards is Tokyo.
And it’s time to reveal the safest destinations in the world.
Top 20 safest cities in the world
1. Tokyo – which is also the most populated city in the world
2. Singapore – here’s the local’s guide to Singapore
3. Osaka
4. Amsterdam – here’s the local’s guide to Amsterdam and Amsterdam Museums Guide
5. Sydney – read the local’s guide to Sydney
6. Toronto – here a Toronto guide for you
7. Washington, DC – here’s your guide for Washington, DC
8 = Copenhagen – read the complete guide to Copenhagen
8 = Seoul
10. Melbourne – here’s a complete guide to Melbourne and a 3-day itinerary
11. Chicago
12. Stockholm
13. San Francisco – read the local’s guide to San Francisco
14. London – discover the perfect London guide and how to visit London like a local
15. New York – here’s the local’s guide to NYC and a 3-day New York City itinerary
16. Frankfurt
17. Los Angeles – read the complete Los Angeles guide
18 = Wellington
18 = Zurich – here’s the insider’s guide to Zurich and Zurich off the beaten path – 30 things to do
20. Hong Kong – here’s the local’s guide to Hong Kong
As you can easily see, the top includes cities from different continents – so these are the safest cities in Europe for tourists, the safest cities in Asia for tourists, and the safest cities in the US for tourists.
Tokyo is the world’s safest city, while Amsterdam is the safest city in Europe, and Washington, DC is the safest city in the US.
Least safe cities in the world
The same report reveals the least safe cities in the world (from the 60 cities analyzed) – and these are:
Top 10 least safe cities in the world
1. Lagos
2. Caracas
3. Yangon
4. Karachi
5. Dhaka
6. Cairo
7. Casablanca
8. Jakarta
9. New Delhi
10. Bogota
As mentioned, the report from The Economist Intelligence Unit covers 60 cities in the world. So here is the complete list of the 60 safest cities in the world.
The report includes some interesting analysis and opinions on the topic – so it is definitely deserve a read, especially as you can get more in-depth knowledge regarding how each city ranked on different factors and how things have changed recently for various countries.
Another interesting aspect is to see the top safest cities based on population, and this report has them grouped based on the number of people.
We’ve already presented you with the largest cities in the world, so this part of the report is very interesting from this point of view. Here are the complete details in regards to the world’s safest cities – rankings by population:
Obviously, there are many more cities that were not taken into consideration. I don’t see my hometown, Bucharest – or one from my country, Romania – anywhere on the top. And I see cities from many countries missing.
However, the top is very useful for trip planning – here is our useful guide on how to create a travel itinerary – as it points out the world’s safest places to visit. All of the cities included have a lot to offer to all type of travelers!
Also, let’s not forget that there are many free things to do in each city, so that will allow you to have budget-friendly visits as well. Use this list of safest places to travel when deciding where you’ll go next.
What do you think of the findings of this report? Which are the cities where you felt most safe?
Photo source pin 1 Tokyo, pin 2 – Amsterdam, Osaka, Singapore, pin 3 Toronto, Amsterdam
We just booked a trip to Japan in March, glad to know it is so safe!
As someone who grew up in LA and experienced multiple drive-bys and has had guns held to my face at a GAS STATION, I’m honestly surprised Los Angeles is anywhere close to the word “safe” hahaha. But I guess big cities are like that when you actually live there.
Great idea for post Violeta! I was surprised Tbilisi wasn’t on any of their lists, although to be fair, I don’t know any stats on it. I just know that it was one of the safest cities I’ve traveled to and (although anecdotal) there weren’t any times during my visit that I felt uncomfortable from a personal security standpoint. Going from not-so-safe cities to Tbilisi was such a nice change! I didn’t take my safety for granted, and still didn’t let my guard down, but it sure was nice not to FEEL like you’re about to get robbed walking down the street at all times. Safety is a nice feeling for sure.