Every year, the non-partisan, London-based Legatum Institute releases its global prosperity

rankings. Alongside other metrics like GDP and democracy, they rank every country on
Earth according to how safe it is. The results give a fascinating guide to where on the planet
you are least likely to be hurt, robbed, raped, or murdered.
5 countries with the lowest crime rates

1. Northern Europe’s liberal bastion Sweden is one of the safest countries on the planet.
In 2015 (the last year the US Department of State holds records for), there were a
mere 90 murders in a population of nearly 10 million. Sweden isn’t totally crime free.
In the tourist months, pickpocketing rates soar. There’s also the thorny matter of rape.
Sweden has the highest rape rate in the whole of Europe, which certainly doesn’t
sound very safe… until you realize the sheer differences between what constitutes
rape in Sweden and what constitutes rape in the USA
2. This tiny European nation of beer and sausages was once home to one of history’s
great empires. The Habsburgs ruled huge swathes of the world from their base here,
with various members in charge of everywhere from modern Germany, to Spain,
Mexico, Peru, and Bosnia. Although the dynasty collapsed following WWI, their
imperial capital of Vienna is still one of the world’s great cities. As a bonus, The
country is shockingly safe to visit, too. From a population only a million or so smaller
than Sweden, Austria clocks around maybe 40 murders on an average year. Its
homicide rate is the 6th lowest in the entire 38-country OECD. That’s not to say
Austria is entirely problem free, of course. Following the 2015 migrant crisis, the
country briefly became a popular human trafficking route, culminating in the tragic
death of 70 migrants in a truck abandoned on the country’s roads. The following year,
in a perhaps not unrelated event, the public came within a whisker of electing
Europe’s first openly far-right head of state since WWII. Despite this, though, Austria
remains a largely-friendly, beautiful place where you’re unlikely to meet a sticky end.
3. The first thing you notice about Switzerland, when you get over all the awe-inspiring
natural beauty, is that the country is absolutely awash with guns. The Swiss love guns
like Texans love… well. Guns. The country has one of the highest firearm ownership
rates in the world, only a few places behind the USA. But while the US is infamous
for shootings, crime in Switzerland is incredibly low. In 2014 (the last year we have
data for), there were only 41 murders in a population of 8 million. Part of this may be
to do with just how crazy rich the nation is. Switzerland has the 12th highest GDP per
capita, and is one of only two countries in the top 14 with a population over 5 million.
The towns fairly reek of prosperity. Forget streets paved with gold. In Switzerland,
people’s wallets are practically lined with Platinum. However, all this prosperity has
come with something of an ethical price. In WWII, the country’s national bank
profited handsomely from handling stolen Nazi gold. In the years since, the country’s
secretive banking industry has been accused of hiding cash for everyone from money
launderers to Pablo freakin’ Escobar
4. Germany has the highest population in the whole of the EU, with nearly 15 million
more citizens than either of its nearest rivals (France and the UK). On top of that, the
country recently absorbed more than one million refugees from Syria and other
warzones. Yet despite all this, nearly every single category of crime has been falling
steadily since reunification in the 1990s. The only crime that’s skyrocketed in recent is
shoplifting. Overall, the country has the 9th lowest homicide rate in the OECD,
meaning you’re only slightly more likely to get murdered in big, bustling Germany
than you are in teeny tiny Austria. Obviously, the raw numbers are higher, but c’mon,
dude. 2,100 murders in a population of 80 million is still pretty good, especially when
you consider the US (pop. 318 million) has recorded over fifteen thousand in recent
years. Of course, life in Germany isn’t all lederhosen and walking home at night in
perfect safety. As the 2016 truck attack on a Berlin Christmas market showed,
Germany is sadly not free of the ills that are currently bedeviling other Western
nations.
5. The population of Norway is an astonishingly-tiny 5 million. Know how many of these
five million modern-day Vikings were murdered in 2015? Twenty one. If Norway was
a US state, it would have the lowest murder rate, and the 3rd lowest number of overall
murders in the whole of America. Only sparsely-populated Vermont (pop. 626,000)
and New Hampshire (pop. 1.3 million) would have fewer stiffs clogging up police
freezers. About the only crime in Norway that is statistically-likely to have any impact
on newcomers is burglary. Not that Norway is completely trouble free. It’s still fewer
than six years since far-right terrorist Anders Breivik detonated a car bomb in Oslo,
then went on a shooting rampage, killing 77. While it’s unlikely there’s another
Breivik out there, people, especially Oslo residents, are still traumatized by the
incident. Still, the 2011 tragedy aside, Norway remains one of the coolest, most-
attractive, most-hassle free countries in the world. Ignore those who accuse the Scandi
nation of being boring. Rich, prosperous Norway is the country other northern
European countries secretly want to be (albeit with more daylight and beer that doesn’t
cost $10 a pop).