Escape Score Index
The Escape Score Index 2026
Every country we cover, ranked by one number: its Escape Score, from 0 to 10. It answers four questions someone moving abroad actually asks — can I stay, can I afford it, will I be safe, and can I live there — from data with an official source behind it.
Last updated 12 Sept 2026 · 110 countries · How the score works · Use this data
| Rank | Country | Escape Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | GeorgiaAsia | 9.3/10 |
| 1 | HungaryEurope | 9.3/10 |
| 3 | CzechiaEurope | 9.2/10 |
| 3 | IndonesiaAsia | 9.2/10 |
| 5 | PortugalEurope | 9.1/10 |
| 5 | RomaniaEurope | 9.1/10 |
| 5 | SpainEurope | 9.1/10 |
| 8 | GreeceEurope | 9/10 |
| 9 | BulgariaEurope | 8.9/10 |
| 9 | CroatiaEurope | 8.9/10 |
| 9 | EstoniaEurope | 8.9/10 |
| 12 | CyprusEurope | 8.8/10 |
| 12 | MalaysiaAsia | 8.8/10 |
| 12 | MaltaEurope | 8.8/10 |
| 12 | PolandEurope | 8.8/10 |
| 16 | AlbaniaEurope | 8.7/10 |
| 17 | CambodiaAsia | 8.6/10 |
| 17 | ItalyEurope | 8.6/10 |
| 17 | LatviaEurope | 8.6/10 |
| 17 | MontenegroEurope | 8.6/10 |
| 21 | GermanyEurope | 8.5/10 |
| 22 | JapanAsia | 8.4/10 |
| 22 | South KoreaAsia | 8.4/10 |
| 22 | TaiwanAsia | 8.4/10 |
| 25 | ArgentinaAmericas | 8.3/10 |
| 26 | AustriaEurope | 8.2/10 |
| 27 | FranceEurope | 8.1/10 |
| 27 | KazakhstanAsia | 8.1/10 |
| 27 | United Arab EmiratesMiddle East | 8.1/10 |
| 30 | PhilippinesAsia | 8/10 |
| 30 | TurkeyMiddle East | 8/10 |
| 32 | AustraliaOceania | 7.9/10 |
| 32 | FinlandEurope | 7.9/10 |
| 32 | NetherlandsEurope | 7.9/10 |
| 32 | ParaguayAmericas | 7.9/10 |
| 36 | MauritiusAfrica | 7.8/10 |
| 36 | ThailandAsia | 7.8/10 |
| 38 | SerbiaEurope | 7.7/10 |
| 38 | SwedenEurope | 7.7/10 |
| 40 | ArmeniaAsia | 7.6/10 |
| 40 | New ZealandOceania | 7.6/10 |
| 40 | NorwayEurope | 7.6/10 |
| 40 | United KingdomEurope | 7.6/10 |
| 44 | BelgiumEurope | 7.5/10 |
| 45 | MoroccoAfrica | 7.4/10 |
| 45 | San MarinoEurope | 7.4/10 |
| 47 | ArubaCaribbean | 7.3/10 |
| 48 | IcelandEurope | 7.2/10 |
| 48 | MontserratCaribbean | 7.2/10 |
| 48 | UruguayAmericas | 7.2/10 |
| 51 | CanadaAmericas | 7.1/10 |
| 51 | DenmarkEurope | 7.1/10 |
| 51 | PanamaAmericas | 7.1/10 |
| 54 | Cape VerdeAfrica | 7/10 |
| 54 | EgyptAfrica | 7/10 |
| 54 | JordanMiddle East | 7/10 |
| 54 | OmanMiddle East | 7/10 |
| 54 | SenegalAfrica | 7/10 |
| 54 | VietnamAsia | 7/10 |
| 60 | BruneiAsia | 6.9/10 |
| 60 | ColombiaAmericas | 6.9/10 |
| 60 | IndiaAsia | 6.9/10 |
| 60 | IrelandEurope | 6.9/10 |
| 60 | KenyaAfrica | 6.9/10 |
| 60 | NamibiaAfrica | 6.9/10 |
| 66 | SingaporeAsia | 6.8/10 |
| 67 | NepalAsia | 6.7/10 |
| 67 | SeychellesAfrica | 6.7/10 |
| 69 | ChinaAsia | 6.6/10 |
| 69 | Costa RicaAmericas | 6.6/10 |
| 69 | QatarMiddle East | 6.6/10 |
| 72 | BrazilAmericas | 6.5/10 |
| 72 | EcuadorAmericas | 6.5/10 |
| 72 | GrenadaCaribbean | 6.5/10 |
| 72 | MaldivesAsia | 6.5/10 |
| 76 | GhanaAfrica | 6.4/10 |
| 76 | Sri LankaAsia | 6.4/10 |
| 78 | Antigua and BarbudaCaribbean | 6.3/10 |
| 78 | BarbadosCaribbean | 6.3/10 |
| 78 | FijiOceania | 6.3/10 |
| 78 | MongoliaAsia | 6.3/10 |
| 82 | AnguillaCaribbean | 6.2/10 |
| 82 | LaosAsia | 6.2/10 |
| 84 | BelizeAmericas | 6.1/10 |
| 84 | BoliviaAmericas | 6.1/10 |
| 84 | ChileAmericas | 6.1/10 |
| 84 | CuracaoCaribbean | 6.1/10 |
| 84 | Hong KongAsia | 6.1/10 |
| 84 | PeruAmericas | 6.1/10 |
| 84 | RwandaAfrica | 6.1/10 |
| 91 | BhutanAsia | 6/10 |
| 91 | Dominican RepublicCaribbean | 6/10 |
| 91 | TanzaniaAfrica | 6/10 |
| 91 | TunisiaAfrica | 6/10 |
| 95 | Saint LuciaCaribbean | 5.9/10 |
| 95 | South AfricaAfrica | 5.9/10 |
| 97 | DominicaCaribbean | 5.8/10 |
| 97 | NicaraguaAmericas | 5.8/10 |
| 99 | El SalvadorAmericas | 5.5/10 |
| 99 | GuatemalaAmericas | 5.5/10 |
| 99 | MexicoAmericas | 5.5/10 |
| 102 | BahamasCaribbean | 5.4/10 |
| 102 | BermudaCaribbean | 5.4/10 |
| 102 | UgandaAfrica | 5.4/10 |
| 105 | BotswanaAfrica | 5.3/10 |
| 105 | IsraelMiddle East | 5.3/10 |
| 107 | Cayman IslandsCaribbean | 5.2/10 |
| 108 | HondurasAmericas | 4.5/10 |
| 109 | SwitzerlandEurope | 4.4/10 |
| 110 | United StatesAmericas | 3.6/10 |
This index publishes the overall score only. The full four-pillar breakdown — each pillar scored, with every input cited to its source — is part of Premium.
See PremiumHow the Escape Score works
Each country is scored 0–10 on four questions. The overall Escape Score is the plain average of those four, weighted equally and rounded to one decimal place.
1 of 4
Can I stay?
The legal routes in on file: how well the best route rates on length of stay, ease and speed, how many kinds of route exist, and whether any leads to residency.
2 of 4
Can I afford it?
What a month costs in the cheapest city we have costed in that country.
3 of 4
Will I be safe?
The intentional homicide rate per 100,000 people (UNODC, via the World Bank), on a log scale.
4 of 4
Can I live there?
Whether any visa route permits work, and the best city internet speed we have on file.
- A missing pillar is left out, not scored zero. If we have no data for one of the four questions, the overall score is the average of the pillars that do have data — a gap in our research is not a mark against the country.
- Our research coverage is not part of the score.Tax, healthcare and the live travel advisory are shown on each country’s page, but deliberately not scored into it.
- The score is a starting point, not advice. Visa rules and costs change; always check the official source linked on the country page before you act.
| 8–10 | Strong across the board |
| 6.5–7.9 | Good, with trade-offs |
| 5–6.4 | Workable if it suits you |
| 3.5–4.9 | Difficult |
| 0–3.4 | Hard going |
Use this data
You are welcome to quote a country’s rank and overall Escape Score, chart the CSV, or embed a badge — please credit the Escape Score Index with a link to https://www.nomadescapeplan.com/escape-score-index.
Download the ranking
Columns: rank, country, region, escape_score, scored_at, url. Refreshed hourly.
escape-score-index.csvEmbed a country’s badge
The badge updates itself when the score changes and links to the country’s page. For any country, use /badge/escape-score/<slug>with the slug from the CSV’s url column.