The Global Peace Index (or GPI) is one of the most effective ways for travelers to measure the safety of their destination. The index measures a variety of local factors to derive a single score indicating each country’s level of “negative peace”. In lay terms, the index works like golf: the lower the score, the better. Factors considered in GPI methodology draw from three main domains: ongoing domestic and international conflict, societal safety and security, and militarization. Scores are derived from each indicator and then normalized to a five-point scale.

So which country is the safest according to the GPI? In 2019, Iceland retained its title for the eleventh straight year with a GPI of 1,072. It is followed closely in the rankings by New Zealand (1,221), Portugal (1,274), Austria (1,291), and Denmark (1,316). At the other end of the spectrum, Afghanistan (3,574) clocked in with the highest GPI, replacing Syria which has seen improvements since the near-eradication of ISIS.

While long-term trends are pretty grim, the world GPI did improve from the previous year by an average of 0.09%. In 2019, 89 countries saw their GPI drop from 2018, while 76 saw an increase over the same time period.