S'pore ranks as safest country in the world for 12th time in Gallup survey

Singapore leads the world in perceived safety among residents, according to Gallup's 2025 Global Safety Report, marking the 12th time it has topped the list.

Other countries that made the top five are, in order of ranking, Tajikistan, China, Oman, and Saudi Arabia.

The report measures perceived safety by the percentage of adults who say they feel safe walking alone at night in the city or area they live.

In a Sep. 18 press release about the 2025 report, Gallup said that more people reported feeling safe in their communities than ever before in 2024, despite a year of unprecedented global conflicts.

Among 145,170 adults polled in 144 countries and territories, 73 per cent reported feeling safe walking alone at night where they live.

It is three percentage points up from the previous year, and the highest level recorded since Gallup began conducting the study in 2006.

Feelings of safety

In Singapore, 98 per cent of residents surveyed said they feel safe walking alone at night in 2024, which Gallup described as a "near-universal sense of safety".

Compared to the last two reports, this figure has increased from 94 and 95 per cent for 2023 and 2022 respectively.

According to Gallup, low crime, effective law enforcement, and strong public order have contributed to Singapore's consistently high levels of perceived safety among its residents.

Ranking right below Singapore is Tajikistan at 95 per cent, followed by China and Oman, both at 94 per cent.

In the United States, 71 per cent of adults said they feel safe walking at night, similar to ratings in the past several years.

Among Singapore's neighbours, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia had ratings of 58, 70, and 83 per cent respectively.

Feelings of safety were lowest in South Africa, with just 33 per cent of adults feeling safe, followed by Lesotho and Botswana at 34 per cent.

On a regional level, the Asia Pacific recorded 79 per cent positive perceptions of safety in terms of walking alone at night, the highest among regions, followed by Western Europe with 77 per cent.

Although Latin America and the Caribbean recorded the lowest level at 50 per cent, it is the first time the region hit this level in the Gallup survey.

Gender disparity

In Singapore, feelings of safety was nearly equal between the genders: 98 per cent of men and 97 per cent of women reported feeling safe when walking alone at night in 2024.

However, the gap is wider globally, with only 67 per cent of women responding positively compared with 78 per cent of men.

Among the 10 countries with the largest gender gaps in 2024 (26 percentage points or more), nearly all are high-income economies, including the United States, Australia, and some European Union member states.

Law and order

Singapore is second behind Tajikistan on Gallup's Law and Order Index.

In addition to feelings of safety when walking alone at night, the index also looks at three more factors, and adds all of them up to a score.

These factors ask whether residents of a city or area have confidence in their local police force, and whether they have experienced theft or assault in the past year.

In 2024, the world's Law and Order Index score was 83 out of 100, while Singapore scored 95, two points lower than Tajikistan.

Kosovo, China, Iceland, and Vietnam all scored at least 93.

Singapore's neighbours are not far behind, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia had scores of 83, 81, and 89 respectively.

Top images from Pixabay.