Prague ranked Europe's safest city for travelers

Low levels of crime and a well-equipped police force mean that Prague is also ranked the world's third-safest city for visitors.

Thomas Smith

Written by Thomas Smith Published on 10.02.2023 12:46:00 (updated on 11.02.2023) Reading time: 2 minutes

Prague is the world’s third-safest city for travelers, according to a study by U.K.-insurance firm William Russell. Impressively, it is ranked as the safest city in the whole of Europe for holidaymakers.

The list assessed the safety of various cities by taking into account their perceived crime rates found on crowdsourced database Numbeo.

Prague was given a “safety index score” of 75.43 out of 100, due to its relative low levels of crime and “well-trained police force.” 

Do you feel safe in Prague?

Yes 93 %
No 3 %
Only sometimes 4 %
264 readers voted on this poll. Voting is open

On Numbeo, the chances of “being mugged or robbed,” “subject to a physical attack,” or having one’s home broken into are adjudged to all be “very low.” Out of 156 minor and major cities across all of Europe, Prague is within the top 20 cities with the least amount of crime. 

Since 1994, Prague’s crime rate has declined from 2 (per 100,000 population) to 0.72 in 2020.

In terms of “safely walking alone during daylight,” Prague was given a score of 91.2 out of 100 for its safety. For walking alone at night, it was given a strong score of 74.

Notably, “corruption and bribery” was the category with the highest score on Numbeo’s crime index.

Visitors must remain alert

Although Prague is technically the least-safe city in the whole of Czechia – and actually saw an increase in its crime rate in 2022 – it still remains extremely safe relative to other European neighbors. 

Tourists should be wary of pickpockets, though. Indeed, a recent study found that Prague was ranked as the fourth-worst city in the whole of Europe for pickpocketing. Charles Bridge and Old Town Square were the most-common places where such crimes occurred.

EXPAT TIP

Curious to see which parts of Prague have the most crime (and which type)? Check this interactive map to see a detailed view of crime statistics in the capital.

With tourism in the country on the up and almost at pre-pandemic levels, more and more people are enjoying Prague's safety.

A separate study found that Tallinn in Estonia, Vilnius in Lithuania, and Milan in Italy were among the top 10 most dangerous European cities (by crime rate).

Although ranked as one of the world’s safest cities, visitors should always keep an eye out for any danger, coming, for example, in the form of pickpocketing or scams

Did you like this article?

Would you like us to write about your business? Find out more