Canada Ranks 14th on the Global Peace Index 2026

What Countries Are the Most Peaceful?

GPI 2026: Key Findings

Overall Peacefulness Declines: The average level of global peacefulness deteriorated by 0.7% in the last year, marking the 12th consecutive year of decline and the 15th deterioration in the last 18 years. Overall, peacefulness deteriorated in 99 countries, while 62 improved.

Record Number of Conflicts: The world is facing a crisis of violent conflict, with 61 active state-based conflicts in 2024, the highest number recorded since the end of World War II. These conflicts are also becoming more international, with at least 103 countries involved in some form of external conflict over the past five years, up from 59 in 2008.

Militarization Trend Reverses: After a decade-long improvement, militarization has reversed over the last three years. Military expenditure as a percentage of GDP deteriorated for the third consecutive year, with 97 countries increasing their relative military spending.

Economic Impact of Violence: The global economic impact of violence reached US$21.8 trillion in purchasing power parity (PPP) in 2025, equivalent to 10.5% of the world’s economic activity, or US$2,657 per person. This 3.2% increase was driven largely by rising military expenditure.

Most and Least Peaceful Nations: Iceland continues its long-held position as the world's most peaceful country, a rank it has held for the 19th consecutive year. Russia remains the least peaceful country, followed by Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ukraine, and Israel.

Canada’s Peacefulness Holds Steady: Canada ranks 14th globally, making it the most peaceful country in Central and North America. Its overall score dropped marginally by 0.2% over the past year, while the next closest country in North and Central America is Costa Rica, with a score of 1.860 and a 62nd-place overall rank.

Regional Peace Overview: Western and Central Europe remains the world’s most peaceful region, home to seven of the top ten most peaceful countries. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) remains the world's least peaceful region.

Conflict Resolution Is Failing: Modern conflicts are becoming harder to resolve. Since the 1970s, the percentage of conflicts ending in a clear victory has fallen from 49% to just 9% in the 2010s, while those ending through peace agreements have dropped from 23% to 4%.

Long-Term Peace Deterioration: Over the past 18 years, global peace has worsened significantly, with the average country’s score down 6.5% since 2008. The gap between the most and least peaceful countries continues to widen.

> See more results and trends at the GPI 2026.

Global Peace Index: Methodology

GPI 2026 Rankings - 1-83

The GPI covers 99.7 per cent of the world’s population using 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators drawn from highly respected sources, which are categorized into three main areas:

1. Ongoing Domestic and International Conflict

Uses six statistical indicators to analyze the extent of countries' involvement in internal and external conflicts, as well as their role and duration of involvement.

2. Societal Safety and Security

Uses eleven indicators to evaluate a nation’s level of harmony or discord. The assertion is that low crime rates, minimal violent demonstrations and terrorist activity, harmonious relations with nearby countries, a stable political scene, and a small proportion of the population internally displaced or made refugees equate to peacefulness.

3. Militarization

Six additional indicators determine a country’s militarization, reflecting links to military buildup and access to weapons, as well as its level of peacefulness domestically and internationally.

Total Scores

Scores for each indicator above are normalized on a scale of 1 to 5. Internal peace indicators are weighted at a total of 60 per cent, while external peace indicators are weighted at a respective 40 per cent. According to the GPI, greater levels of internal peace are likely to lead to lower external conflicts, which is why associated indicators are weighted 60/40.

A total score is then formulated for all 163 nations based on the scores above.

Peace & Progressive Development

GPI 2026 Rankings - 84-163

Canada’s top-15 ranking on the GPI 2026 shows it leads the world stage in peaceful existence. This reflects Canada’s strong record on human rights protections, as peace and progressive development are inextricably linked ^[2].

According to the IEP, peace is a crucial component of progressive development. A healthy business environment needs favourable social, political, and economic conditions to foster progressive development over time.

Global investors are always carefully observing conditions described in the IEP’s Eight Pillars of Positive Peace, which include ^[3]:

• Well-functioning government
• Sound business environment
• Equitable distribution of resources
• Acceptance of the rights of others
• Good relations with neighbours
• Free flow of information
• High levels of human capital
• Low levels of corruption

These pillars correlate with desirable capital-related outcomes in prosperous business environments. Today, many investors look to criteria similar to the IEP’s Eight Pillars as a ‘guiding light’ for where to invest their money so it can grow.

However, investors in Canada still face challenges, particularly with an overburdened regulatory system that has discouraged natural resource investment over the past several years.

Peaceful, Reliable Trading Partners

Questions remain: Where should investors put their money for the best results? Or, in other words, what are the best sources of supply for the natural resources the world needs?

1.       Countries with a low ranking on the GPI that display low levels of social safety and security, high levels of militarization, and a high risk of violent internal and external conflicts?

2.       Countries that rank high on the GPI with high levels of social safety and security, low levels of militarization, and little risk of violent internal and external conflicts?

The world’s growing resource security crisis shows why where we get our natural resources matters. Western countries have quickly learned that over-reliance on unstable, unreliable autocratic regimes for oil and natural gas, for example, can lead to significant energy shortages with severe, unintended consequences such as deindustrialization, inflation, and other economic hardships.

Peaceful, reliable, democratic supply sources, such as Canada, are a better investment choice for the natural resources the world needs, don’t you agree?

Canada is a Peaceful Resource Powerhouse

With growing global demand for everything from food to energy to minerals to wood, it makes sense to source these materials from the most peaceful, reliable democratic countries, like Canada, which has world-class human rights protections and a continued commitment to advancing critical social initiatives worldwide.

Canada, a bastion of global peace and democracy, is a reliable supplier for all of the above. There’s no doubt about it.

Join Us Today

Join us and our hundreds of thousands of followers on social media today for balanced, fact-based, non-partisan and honest discussions on Canada’s world-class natural resource sectors!

Let’s work together to make Canada stronger! https://t.co/zb10X80V5s

— Canada Action (@CanadaAction) September 16, 2026

SOURCES:

_{1 - https://www.visionofhumanity.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Global-Peace-Index-2026-Report.pdf}

_{2 - https://www.adecesg.com/resources/blog/the-link-between-peace-and-sustainable-development/}

_{3 - https://www.visionofhumanity.org/the-eight-pillars-of-positive-peace/}