Gay friendly countries ranked

Almost Half of the World Sees Their Area as Gay-Friendly

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Nearly half of people worldwide (45%) viewed their city or area as a “good place” for gay or lesbian people to reside in Nearly as many, 44%, said it is “not a good place.”

Acceptance is down from levels between and , when it hovered around 50%, but it is still more than double the 21% first measured in

Nordic countries, including Norway (92%), Iceland (90%), Sweden (89%) and Denmark (86%), continue to rank among the most accepting places in the world. Other European countries -- including Spain (89%), the Netherlands (88%) and Malta (87%) -- also top the list, as does Australia (85%).

Nepal (87%), which became the first region in South Asia to recognize same-sex marriage in , remains the only non-Western country among the most accepting nations.

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Perceptions of acceptance remain lowest in African and Middle Eastern countries, including several where consensual same-sex sexual acts are illegal, such as Senegal (1%), Gambia (3%), Malawi (4%), Zambia (5%), and L

Rainbow Map

rainbow map

These are the main findings for the edition of the rainbow map

The Rainbow Map ranks 49 European countries on their respective legal and policy practices for LGBTI people, from %.

The UK has dropped six places in ILGA-Europe’s Rainbow Map, as Hungary and Georgia also register steep falls following anti-LGBTI legislation. The data highlights how rollbacks on LGBTI human rights are part of a broader erosion of democratic protections across Europe. Read more in our press release.

“Moves in the UK, Hungary, Georgia and beyond signal not just isolated regressions, but a coordinated global backlash aimed at erasing LGBTI rights, cynically framed as the defence of tradition or public stability, but in reality designed to entrench discrimination and suppress dissent.”

  • Katrin Hugendubel, Advocacy Director, ILGA-Europe


Malta has sat on top of the ranking for the last 10 years. 

With 85 points, Belgium jumped to second place after adopting policies tackling hatred based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics. 

Rainbow Europe Map and Index

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  • Despite intense anti-LGBTI attacks in several countries, equality is still advancing across Europe.
  • While the public discourse is becoming more polarised and violent, particularly against trans people, political determination to advance LGBTI rights is paying off. The largest gains on the map are for countries that introduced legal gender recognition using a self-determination model. Over the past 12 months bans on intersex genital mutilation (IGM) are also bringing countries up in the ranking.
  • Spain jumped six places to number four with its introduction of LGR with self determination, alongside a ban on IGM, while Finland entered the top ten, again up six places, again with LGR based on self-determination. Greece has also moved up four places with its ban on IGM.
  • Gender identity and sex characteristics are included in anti-discrimination and/or hate crime legislation, moving Belgium, Iceland and Moldova up the chart alongside Spain.
  • Moldova has jumped 14 places because sexual orientation and gende

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    How the Most LGBT Friendly Countries Are Ranked

    So, just what does it take to be considered one of the most LGBTQ+ friendly countries in the world? A lot, and rightfully so. We've based our listed on The Willia