Best Countries for Women’s Rights (2025): Where To Move for Equality & Safety

Based on our research, the best countries for women’s rights are Sweden, Iceland, Finland, Norway, Germany, New Zealand, and Nicaragua.

Moving to one of the best countries for women’s rights can dramatically transform your life. Of course, you also need to find a way to get there! With the help of a quality international moving company (and some extra knowledge about the country you’re moving to), your move to a new country can go without a hitch.

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What makes a country great for women’s rights?

The following are some of the top factors that make a country great for women’s rights:

The 7 best countries for women’s rights

Sweden: Best overall for women

Sweden is our top overall pick for women thanks to its commitment to gender equality across all facets of life. Sweden uses many policies to encourage women to stay in the workforce, such as gender-neutral paid parental leave that encourages fathers to also help with children. Women also take an active role in business leadership, with 53% of state-owned companies having a woman CEO.

Women are also well-represented politically in Sweden. Eleven of the 23 ministers are women, and 161 of the 349 members of Swedish parliament (46%) are women. This can trace its roots to movements like the Gender Equality Act of 1979, which come from Swedish society’s focus on equality and social justice.

Stockholm and other large Swedish cities are considered some of the safest in the world. It is worth noting that Sweden has more rape cases reported than other countries, but this is at least partly because of Swedish laws that include marital rape and report each case separately.

🤩 Fun fact: Sweden’s gender-neutral parental leave (introduced in 1974) was the first of its kind in the world. Additional policy adjustments over time have helped encourage more childcare involvement by fathers.

Iceland: Best pay equality

Iceland has had equal pay legislation in place since the 1960s. In 2017, the country took things a step further with tougher laws to make unequal pay for equal work illegal. Several times over its history, women in Iceland have staged highly influential women’s strikes to advocate for equal pay and other rights – and this has directly impacted Icelandic law and culture.

Iceland’s affordable healthcare and education systems also go a long way in promoting women’s equality. Pregnancy visits and even childbirth are free under Iceland’s healthcare system. Iceland also subsidizes childcare for children ages two and up to allow both parents to continue to work.

Nearly 48% of Iceland’s parliament are women, and women also make up the majority of university students. Combined with its generally safe cities and beautiful natural surroundings, Iceland is a great place for women.

🤩 Fun fact: Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, who became president of Iceland in 1980, was the world’s first democratically elected female president.

Read our full profile on moving to Iceland.

Finland: Best political representation

When it comes to political representation, it’s hard to top Finland. Finland gave women the right to vote in 1906. Finland has had several women fill prominent roles such as president and prime minister. Currently, 46% of the Finnish parliament, 12 out of 19 government ministers, and over 50% of diplomats are women.

This political representation has had a major influence on other aspects of gender equality. Finland offers 40 days of paid leave during pregnancy, as well as 160 days of parental leave for both biological and adoptive parents.

Finland is regularly ranked as the happiest country in the world thanks to its quality healthcare and education systems, a sense of community and trust, and safety.

🤩 Fun fact: When Sanna Marin became Finland’s prime minister in 2019, she was just 34 years old, making her the world’s youngest female state ladder.

Norway: Best work-life balance

Norway’s approach to work-life balance goes a long way in supporting equality for women. Parents in Norway can take 12 months’ leave when they have children, with mandatory parental benefits distributed by the government. Self-employed individuals and freelancers also qualify for this benefit. Pregnancy services are free in Norway, and monthly child benefits and low cost kindergarten make it easier for women to go back to work after having children.

Norwegian culture values spending time with family and friends or participating in hobbies. Employees are required to receive at least 25 paid vacation days each year, while shorter, flexible work hours also promote work-life balance for parents and others.

Norway is also great for women thanks to its legal commitment to equality. For example, public companies are required to have at least 40% women on their boards. The country’s Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act puts gender equality front and center in both domestic and foreign policy.

🤩 Fun fact: Norway introduced female conscription in 2015, making it the first country to have the same formal terms for a military draft for both men and women.

Germany: Best constitutional protections

Germany’s commitment to gender equality has been in place in its constitution since 1949, with an additional focus on getting rid of “existing disadvantages” added in 1994. This has led to several other laws and practices to promote pay transparency, women in STEM, setting quotas for women on company boards, and implementing laws focused on stopping violence against women.

Thanks to this legal framework, Germany scores highly in areas like access to healthcare and childcare. Half of college graduates and 46% of doctoral students are women. More women have become involved in politics in recent years, though rates are lower than some of the other countries on this list.

Women in Germany also have a life expectancy almost five years longer than men. Thanks to a legal framework that is consistently promoting women’s rights, quality of life for German women will continue to improve.

🤩 Fun fact: Angela Merkel served as Germany’s Federal Chancellor for 16 years (four terms), until 2021, when she chose to step down rather than run for a fifth term.

Read our full profile on moving to Germany.

New Zealand: Best reproductive & social policies

With three female prime ministers to date, New Zealand has long established itself as a progressive country with a strong focus on women’s rights. For example, the country has quotas for women in political parties as part of its commitment to inclusivity and social justice. The UN reports that New Zealand has nearly 89% of legal frameworks to promote and enforce gender equality, with a special emphasis on addressing violence against women.

New Zealand’s government has also specifically focused on the needs of Maori, Pacific islander, and other ethnic groups.

New Zealand women enjoy 26 weeks of paid maternity leave, as well as a gender wage gap of just under 6%. Childcare subsidies also help support the needs of working families. A strong universal healthcare system also improves outcomes for women throughout the country.

🤩 Fun fact: In 1893, New Zealand became the first self-governing country to give women the right to vote.

Read our full profile on moving to New Zealand.

Nicaragua: Best for safety & personal freedom

Moving to a different part of the globe, Nicaragua is the highest-rated Latin American country for women’s safety and equality. While there is still much work to do in regards to issues like employment and land ownership, Nicaragua has come a long way. For example, women in Nicaragua outperform men in literacy and education rates.

Nicaragua offers a universal healthcare system through public hospitals that are available for both residents and travelers. Private hospitals are also available, with much lower rates than you would find in the US. A low cost of living overall makes Nicaragua very affordable for female expats, with areas like Granada and Laguna de Apoyo being especially popular.

Nicaragua has a very strong representation of women in politics. The UN reports that nearly 54% of Nicaragua’s parliament are women. This high level of representation has helped contribute to laws protecting female victims of violence.

🤩 Fun fact: About 30% of the Sandinista revolutionaries in the Nicaraguan Revolution of the 1960s and 70s were women.

Comparing the best countries for women’s rights to the US

Two of the most well-known measurements for women’s rights are the Global Gender Gap Report and the Georgetown Women Peace and Security Index. When it comes to women’s rights, the US has some catching up to do, ranking 44th and 37th on these lists because of factors like perception of community safety, maternal mortality, and economic equity.

According to the 2024 Global Gender Gap Report, these are the 20 best countries for women:

Starting from the bottom, the 20 worst-performing countries on the Global Gender Gap Report are:

Tips for moving to a female-friendly country

If moving overseas to a female-friendly country is in your future, use a comprehensive international moving checklist to help things go smoothly:

Best Overall International Van Lines rating 4.8 / 5 Licensed Insured Price Check prices 866-533-2573

Best for specialty services Solomon & Sons International Relocation Services rating 4.5 / 5 Licensed Insured Price Check prices 844-690-0216

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