LGBT Equality Index

The most LGBT-Friendly Countries in the World.

The Equality Index measures the current status of LGBT rights, laws, and freedoms as well as public attitudes towards LGBT people.
0 (Less Equal)
100 (More Equal)

Public Opinion vs. Legal Rights

North America
South America
Europe
Africa
Asia
Oceania

Equality Index by Continent

Average LGBTQ+ Equality Index scores of each continent.

ContinentEquality IndexLegal IndexPublic Opinion Index
South America 12 countries
61
73
49
Europe 50 countries
58
70
46
North America 23 countries
43
53
34
Oceania 14 countries
40
43
44
Asia 44 countries
30
30
32
Africa 54 countries
23
24
22

Equality Index by Region

Australia and New Zealand, the Nordic countries, and parts of Europe rank highest in terms of the Equality Index while the Middle East and most of Africa (with the exception of South Africa) rank lowest — both in terms of legal protections and public opinion.

RegionEquality IndexLegal IndexPublic Opinion Index
Nordic Countries 5 countries
83
90
76
Australia and New Zealand 2 countries
77
91
63
North America 3 countries
74
89
58
British Isles 2 countries
70
83
58
Western Europe 9 countries
70
81
60
South America 12 countries
61
73
49
Southern Europe 16 countries
61
75
47
Baltic Countries 3 countries
51
65
36
Eastern Asia 6 countries
47
52
45
Southern Africa 5 countries
47
53
40
Central America 7 countries
46
54
39
Eastern Europe 11 countries
43
55
31
Micronesia 5 countries
40
43
16
Southeast Asia 11 countries
39
35
46
Melanesia 4 countries
36
37
34
Caribbean 13 countries
35
45
25
Central Africa 9 countries
28
33
20
Southern and Central Asia 14 countries
28
29
27
Eastern Africa 17 countries
22
22
24
Middle East 17 countries
21
23
20
Polynesia 3 countries
21
21
Not enough data
Western Africa 16 countries
18
20
17
Northern Africa 7 countries
12
9
17
Show 18 More

Largest Disparities

Regions where legal progress and public views don't align. Comparing the legal rights and the public opinion highlights regions where the public's support has advanced past (or fallen behind) legal progress. These may be potential areas for advocacy and change. (Countries without public opinion data are excluded.)

Public Opinion Ahead of Legal Progress

CountryLegal IndexPublic Opinion IndexDifference
1. Barbados
3871+33
2. Guyana
2253+32
3. China
3966+27
4. Cape Verde
5580+26
5. Myanmar
1338+25
6. United Arab Emirates
023+22
7. Iraq
322+20
8. Syria
827*+19
9. Saudi Arabia
322+19
10. Malaysia
927+19

Legal Progress Ahead of Public Opinion

CountryLegal IndexPublic Opinion IndexDifference
1. Moldova
678-58
2. Greece
9240-51
3. Mongolia
6717-49
4. Bolivia
8738-48
5. Ecuador
8942-47
6. Croatia
8033-47
7. Antigua and Barbuda
6017*-43
8. Cyprus
7936-42
9. Colombia
9250-41
10. Germany
10061-39

World Equality Index

Which countries are the most LGBT-friendly? The Legal Index scores the legal rights and freedoms LGBTQ+ people have while the Public Opinion Index scores how the general public feels in each region.

CountryEquality IndexLegal IndexPublic Opinion Index
1. Iceland
9510090
2. Norway
878887
3. Uruguay
849474
4. Spain
8310067
5. Denmark
829469
6. Chile
8010061
7. Malta
8010061
8. Germany
8010061
9. Andorra
808674
10. Cuba
799266
11. Canada
799662
12. Australia
789461
13. Portugal
779460
14. New Zealand
778865
15. Netherlands
768765
16. Sweden
758565
17. Brazil
759357
18. Belgium
758861
19. France
749059
20. Finland
748266
21. Argentina
748761
22. United States
728856
23. Ireland
728459
24. Austria
718360
25. Colombia
719250
26. Mexico
708457
27. Nepal
697168
28. Costa Rica
698554
29. United Kingdom
698256
30. Liechtenstein
696968
31. Italy
687659
32. Cape Verde
685580
33. Luxembourg
678252
34. Czechia
677263
35. South Africa
677758
36. Switzerland
677064
37. San Marino
676371*
38. Greece
669240
39. Ecuador
658942
40. Thailand
656367
41. Slovenia
658148
42. Bolivia
628738
43. Israel
627351
44. Seychelles
615566*
45. Taiwan
596751
46. Estonia
587344
47. Cyprus
587936
48. Croatia
578033
49. Montenegro
557535
50. Barbados
553871
51. Fiji
5555
52. India
555653
53. Peru
546445
54. Timor-Leste
544960
55. Japan
545751
56. Philippines
544959
57. Monaco
535651*
58. Botswana
535451
59. China
523966
60. Bhutan
525450*
61. Venezuela
524856
62. Vietnam
515053
63. Mauritius
515052
64. Mozambique
515547
65. Bosnia and Herzegovina
506338
66. Poland
505743
67. Serbia
496533
68. Slovakia
496433
69. Belize
495444
70. Marshall Islands
4949
71. Hungary
495740
72. North Macedonia
486433
73. Kosovo
486630
74. Ukraine
485739
75. Federated States of Micronesia
4848
76. Albania
476728
77. Lithuania
476628
78. Sao Tome and Principe
474944
79. Latvia
465835
80. South Korea
465339
81. Honduras
465833
82. Cambodia
464151
83. Nicaragua
455040
84. Laos
454050
85. Romania
445533
86. Singapore
443949
87. Lesotho
445532
88. Nauru
4343
89. Angola
425035
90. Mongolia
426717
91. El Salvador
414835
92. Namibia
414933
93. Suriname
415923
94. Vanuatu
394534*
95. Bulgaria
395227
96. Panama
394334
97. Equatorial Guinea
3838
98. Antigua and Barbuda
386017*
99. Guyana
372253
100. Moldova
37678
101. Dominican Republic
364033
102. Bahrain
363042*
103. Guatemala
353831
104. Paraguay
343831
105. Rwanda
343732
106. Saint Lucia
345117*
107. Saint Kitts and Nevis
335215*
108. Turkey
323233
109. Guinea-Bissau
324024*
110. Djibouti
3232
111. Bahamas
324816
112. Tajikistan
3232
113. Georgia
325013
114. Dominica
324914*
115. Palau
314716*
116. Pakistan
313131
117. Vatican City
3131
118. North Korea
3131
119. Republic of the Congo
304417
120. Samoa
3030
121. Madagascar
303822
122. Sri Lanka
292434
123. Benin
294216
124. Russia
293523
125. Kiribati
2828
126. Haiti
284511
127. Eswatini
282827
128. Belarus
273816
129. Trinidad and Tobago
262527
130. Central African Republic
2626
131. Papua New Guinea
2626
132. Myanmar
251338
133. Armenia
25455
134. Gabon
253613
135. Bangladesh
251633
136. Niger
243612
137. Tuvalu
2424
138. Grenada
233017
139. Kazakhstan
233511
140. Côte d’Ivoire
233114
141. Solomon Islands
2323
142. Indonesia
223311
143. Democratic Republic of the Congo
22358*
144. Kenya
212419
145. Jamaica
212418
146. Kyrgyzstan
203110
147. Uzbekistan
202118*
148. Palestine
19298
149. Malaysia
18927
150. Turkmenistan
1818
151. Ghana
181818
152. Syria
18827*
153. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
17268*
154. Azerbaijan
17285
155. Jordan
17276
156. Comoros
171519*
157. Lebanon
161815
158. Liberia
16249
159. Guinea
141514
160. Sierra Leone
14226
161. Tunisia
141315
162. Chad
141414
163. Tanzania
141314
164. Sudan
14919
165. Morocco
131215
166. Libya
13819
167. Algeria
13719
168. Iraq
13322
169. Zimbabwe
121410
170. Saudi Arabia
12322
171. Ethiopia
121013
172. United Arab Emirates
11023
173. Nigeria
11715
174. Yemen
10417*
175. Burundi
101010*
176. Mauritania
10416
177. Egypt
10515
178. Tonga
1010
179. Uganda
9118
180. Togo
9512
181. Burkina Faso
9710
182. South Sudan
88
183. Malawi
8125
184. Zambia
888
185. Qatar
879*
186. Mali
869
187. Cameroon
7411
188. Maldives
658*
189. Kuwait
666*
190. Iran
573
191. Eritrea
55
192. Senegal
453
193. Oman
33
194. Brunei
33
195. Gambia
324
196. Afghanistan
102*
197. Somalia
11
* Region's public opinion data is based on less than three surveys

Equality Index Methodology

Equaldex's Equality Index is a rating from 0 to 100 (with 100 being the most equal) to help visualize the legal rights and public attitudes towards LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex...) people in each region. The Equality Index is an average of two indexes: the legal index and the public opinion Index.

Equality Index

Average of Legal Index and Public Opinion Index

Legal Index

The LGBT legal index measures the current legal status of 13 different issues ranging from the legal status of homosexuality, same-sex marriage, transgender rights, LGBT discrimination protections, LGBT censorship laws, and more. Each topic is weighted differently (for example, if same-sex marriage is illegal in a region, it would have a much bigger impact on the score than not allowing LGBT people to serve in the military). Each topic is assigned a "total possible score" and a "score" is assigned based the status of the law using a rating scale that ranges from 0% to 100% (for example, if homosexuality is legal, it would would receive a score of 100, but if it's illegal, it would receve a score of 0.)

If the status of an issue is unknown, not applicable, or no data has not been added to Equaldex, the issue's score is completely discarded and not included in the ranking. In cases where a law varies throughout a region (for example, a country where same-sex marriage is legal in some states or provinces but not others), the score is averaged among all states or provinces, weighted equally.

Past laws that are no longer in effect do not impact the region's current score. New laws that have not gone into effect yet will not impact the region's score until the day it goes into effect.

Legal Index

(Total Possible Score for each issue × Factor of Status of Issue) / Sum of all Total Possible Scores

IssueTotal Possible ScoreStatusFactor
Homosexual activity100Legal×1.00
Male illegal, female uncertain×0.20
Male illegal, female legal×0.20
Illegal (other penalty)×0.15
Illegal (imprisonment as punishment)×0.10
Illegal (up to life in prison as punishment)×0.05
Illegal (death penalty as punishment)×0.00
Same-sex marriage60Legal×1.00
Civil unions (marriage rights)×0.80
Civil unions (limited rights)×0.70
Other type of partnership×0.50
Foreign same-sex marriages recognized only×0.40
Unregistered cohabitation×0.30
Unrecognized×0.10
Banned×0.00
Censorship of LGBT issues40No censorship×1.00
State-enforced×0.30
Fine as punishment×0.20
Other punishment×0.10
Imprisonment as punishment×0.05
Death penalty as punishment×0.00
Right to change legal gender40Legal, no restrictions×1.00
Legal, but requires medical diagnosis×0.70
Legal, but requires surgery×0.40
Illegal×0.00
Gender-affirming care20Legal×1.00
Legal, but restricted for minors×0.70
Legal, but banned for minors×0.50
Restricted×0.30
Banned×0.00
Legal recognition of non-binary gender30Recognized×1.00
Intersex only×0.70
Not legally recognized×0.00
Hate crime protections40Sexual orientation and gender identity×1.00
Sexual orientation only×0.50
Protected in some contexts×0.30
No protections×0.00
LGBT discrimination20Illegal×1.00
Illegal in some contexts×0.50
No protections×0.00
LGBT employment discrimination20Sexual orientation and gender identity×1.00
Gender identity only×0.50
Sexual orientation only×0.50
No protections×0.00
LGBT housing discrimination20Sexual orientation and gender identity×1.00
Sexual orientation only×0.50
Gender identity only×0.50
No protections×0.00
Same-sex adoption20Legal×1.00
Married couples only×0.50
Second parent adoption only×0.40
Single only×0.20
Illegal×0.00
Intersex infant surgery20Full ban×1.00
Parental approval required×0.30
Not banned×0.00
Serving openly in military20Legal×1.00
Lesbians, gays, bisexuals permitted, transgender people banned×0.70
Don't Ask, Don't Tell×0.50
Illegal×0.00
Blood donations by MSMs10Legal×1.00
Legal with restrictions×0.80
Banned (less than 6-month deferral)×0.30
Banned (6-month deferral)×0.20
Banned (1-year deferral)×0.15
Banned (5-year deferral)×0.10
Banned (indefinite deferral)×0.00
Conversion therapy10Banned×1.00
Sexual orientation only×0.50
Not banned×0.00
Equal age of consent10Equal×1.00
Female equal, male N/A×0.75
Female equal, male unequal×0.50
Unequal×0.00

Public Opinion Index

The LGBT public opinion index measures the public attitudes towards LGBT people using surveys and polls from reputable organizations. This index is scored based on averaging the results of all surveys in a given region. Generally, the value averaged is usually the most "equal" response in the poll. For example, if a poll asked "Do you support same-sex marriage?" and 56% of people said "yes", the value "56" would be used. In some cases, a survey may be weighted less if the survey is very specific or includes a specific group of people (such as Christians) and might not be a full representation of the overall attitudes of the region.

To better represent current attitudes, surveys are scored using a time-decay weighting method based on the date published. This means that the most recent surveys carry more weight in the public opinion index. Surveys from the current year and the previous year receive full weight. However, for surveys older than two years, an exponential decay of 75% applies each year. This weight decay ensures that the public opinion index is always most influenced by the most recent data, reflecting evolving public attitudes, while still taking into account older surveys to maintain a comprehensive overview. This change went into effect on July 21, 2023.

Note that public opinion data is not available in every region. In these cases, the Equality Index will only be a representation of the legal rights of LGBT people in the region. Additionally, some regions have no recent public opinion data available, so older data is used to score the region.

Public Opinion Index

(Survey Results Value × Survey Weight × Time Decay Factor) / (Survey Weight × Time Decay Factor)

Year Survey Published Time Decay Factor
2025 (current year)0.7501
20240.7501
20230.7510.75
20220.7520.5625
20210.7530.421875
20200.7540.31640625
20190.7550.2373046875
20180.7560.177978515625
20170.7570.13348388671875
20160.7580.10011291503906
20150.7590.075084686279297
(etc.)

Notes

  • Equaldex's Equality Index is constantly being improved and tracking it over time may not represent changes in equality over time. As more data is contributed to Equaldex, the index becomes more accurate. For example, adding survey results to a region will likely change the region's Equality Index — even more so if there is limited data on the region. In this case, the change in score could represent a change in attitudes in the region, but it may also just be an increase in the index's accuracy.
  • Global opinion surveys rarely include transgender topics. Especially in more conservative regions, surveys are usually limited to homosexuality or same-sex marriage. Equaldex continues to seek more international transgender public opinion data to make the Equality Index more inclusive.
  • Regions are ranked based on their raw, unrounded Equality Index scores, but rounded values are used for simplicity.
  • The model for the Equality Index is evolving, and adjustments to weights and other parameters are likely as we continue to improve its accuracy and relevance.
  • The Equality Index is updated automatically as data is added to Equaldex and as new laws go into effect. When a new law or survey is added to Equaldex, the index will recalculate within a few hours.